Cleveland Indians
Encyclopedia
The Cleveland Indians are a professional baseball team
based in Cleveland, Ohio
. They are in the Central Division
of Major League Baseball
's American League
. Since , they have played in Progressive Field. The team's spring training
facility is in Goodyear, Arizona
. Since their establishment as a Major League franchise in 1901, the Indians have won two World Series
championships, in 1920
and 1948
.
The "Indians" name originates from a request by the club owner to decide on a new name, following the 1914 season. In reference to the Boston Braves (now the Atlanta Braves
), the media chose "the Indians". Common nicknames for the Indians include the "Tribe" and the "Wahoos," the latter being a reference to their logo, Chief Wahoo
; The mascot is called Slider.
The Cleveland team originated in 1900 as the Lake Shores, when the American League (AL) was officially a minor league. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the major league incarnation of the club was founded in Cleveland in . Originally called the Cleveland Bluebirds, the team played in League Park
until moving permanently to Cleveland Municipal Stadium in . At the end of the 2010 season, they had a regular season franchise record of 8,691–8,367 (.509). The Indians have won seven AL Central titles, the most in the division.
1865-1868 Forest Citys of Cleveland (Minor League)
1869-1872 Forest Citys of Cleveland
From 1865 to 1868 Forest Citys was a amateur club ball club. During the 1869
season, Cleveland was among several cities which established professional baseball teams following the success of the 1869 Cincinnati Red Stockings
, the first fully professional team. In the newspapers before and after 1870, the team was often called the Forest Citys
, in the same generic way that the team from Chicago was sometimes called The Chicagos.
In 1871
the Forest Citys joined the new National Association of Professional Base Ball Players
(NA), the first professional league. Ultimately, two of the league's western clubs went out of business during the first season and the Chicago Fire left that city's White Stockings
impoverished, unable to field a team again until 1874
. Cleveland was thus the NA's westernmost outpost in 1872
, the year the club folded. Cleveland played their full schedule to July 19 followed by two games versus Boston in mid-August and disbanded at the end of the season.
1879-1881 Cleveland Forest Citys
1882-1884 Cleveland Blues ①
In 1876
, the National League
(NL) supplanted the NA as the major professional league. Cleveland was not among its charter members, but by 1879
the league was looking for new entries and the city gained an NL team. The Cleveland Forest Citys baseball team was then re-created. The National League required distinct colors for the 1882 season, so the Cleveland Forest Citys became the Cleveland Blues
. They then had a mediocre record for six seasons and were ruined by a trade war with the Union Association
(UA) in 1884
, when its three best players (Fred Dunlap
, Jack Glasscock
, and Jim McCormick) jumped to the UA after being offered higher salaries. Cleveland Blues merged with the St. Louis Maroons UA team in 1885
.
1887-1899 Cleveland Spiders — nickname "Blues" ②
Cleveland went without major league baseball for two seasons until gaining a team in the American Association
(AA) in 1887
. After the AA's Allegheny club
jumped to the NL Cleveland followed suit in 1889
, as the AA began to crumble. The Cleveland ball club, named the Spiders
(supposedly inspired by their "skinny and spindly" players) slowly became a power in the league. The next year the Spiders moved into League Park
, which would serve as the home of Cleveland professional baseball for the next 55 years. Led by native Ohioan Cy Young
, the Spiders became a contender in the mid-1890s, when they played in the Temple Cup
Series (that era's World Series) twice, winning it in 1895
. The team began to fade after this success, and was dealt a severe blow under the ownership of the Robison brothers
.
Prior to the season, Frank Robison, the Spiders owner, bought the St. Louis Browns
, thus owning two clubs at the same time. The Browns were renamed the "Perfectos," and restocked with Cleveland talent. Just weeks before the season opener, most of the better Spiders players were transferred to St. Louis, including three future Hall of Famers: Cy Young, Jesse Burkett
and Bobby Wallace
. The roster maneuvers failed to create a powerhouse Perfectos team, as St. Louis finished fifth in both 1899 and . The Spiders were left with essentially a minor league lineup, and began to lose games at a record pace. Drawing almost no fans at home, they ended up playing most of their season on the road, and became known as "The Wanderers." The team ended the season in 12th place, 84 games out of first place, with an all-time worst record of 20 wins and 134 losses. Following the 1899 season, the National League disbanded four teams, including the Cleveland franchise. The disastrous 1899 season would actually be a step toward a new future for Cleveland fans the next year.
1900, Cleveland Infants — nickname "Babes"
The Cleveland Infants was in the Players' League. The League was well-attended, at least in some cities, but was underfunded and its owners lacked the confidence to continue beyond the one season. There were eight teams who were star-studded; the Boston franchise won the championship. The Cleveland Infants finished with 55 wins and 75 losses. Their home games were played at Brotherhood Park
.
The new team was owned by coal magnate Charles Somers
and tailor Jack Kilfoyl. Somers, a wealthy industrialist and also co-owner of the Boston Americans
, lent money to other team owners, including Connie Mack
's Philadelphia Athletics
, to keep them and the new league afloat. Players didn't think the name "Bluebirds" was suitable for a baseball team. Writers frequently shortened it to "Blues" ③ due to the players' all-blue uniforms, but the players didn't like this name either. The players themselves tried to change the name to "Broncos" in , but it never really caught on.
The Bluebirds suffered from financial problems in their first two seasons. This led Somers to seriously consider moving to either Pittsburgh or Cincinnati. Relief came in 1902 as a result of the conflict between the National and American Leagues. In 1901, Napoleon "Nap" Lajoie
, the Philadelphia Phillies
' star second baseman
, jumped to the A's after his contract was capped at $2,400 per year—one of the highest-profile players to jump to the upstart AL. The Phillies subsequently filed an injunction to force Lajoie's return, which was granted by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. The injunction appeared to doom any hopes of an early settlement between the warring leagues. However, a lawyer discovered that the injunction was only enforceable in the state of Pennsylvania. Mack, partly to thank Somers for his past financial support, agreed to trade Lajoie to the then-moribund Blues, who offered $25,000 salary over three years. Due to the injunction, however, Lajoie had to sit out any games played against the A's in Philadelphia. Lajoie arrived in Cleveland on June 4 and was an immediate hit, drawing 10,000 fans to League Park. Soon afterward, he was named team captain, and the team was renamed the "Naps" after a newspaper conducted a write-in contest.
Lajoie was named manager in , and the team's fortunes improved somewhat. They finished half a game short of the pennant in 1908. However, the success did not last and Lajoie resigned during the 1909 season as manager but remained on as a player.
After that, the team began to unravel, leading Kilfoyl to sell his share of the team to Somers. Cy Young
, who returned to Cleveland in 1909, was ineffective for most of his three remaining years and Addie Joss
died from tubercular meningitis prior to the season.
Despite a strong lineup anchored by the potent Lajoie and Shoeless Joe Jackson
, poor pitching kept the team below third place for most of the next decade. One reporter referred to the team as the Napkins, "because they fold up so easily". In 1912 the teams name was changed to "Cleveland Molly McGuires" after the coal miners who where trying to establish a union and were regarded as "heroes". The name lasted only three years. The team hit bottom in 1914 and 1915, finishing in the cellar both years.
1915 brought significant changes to the team. Lajoie, nearly 40 years old was no longer a top hitter in the league, batting only .258 in 1914. With Lajoie engaged in a feud with manager Joe Birmingham
, the team sold Lajoie back to the A's.
With Lajoie gone, the Molly McGuires now needed a new nickname. Somers asked the local newspapers to come up with a new name, and they chose "Indians". Legend has it that the team honored Louis Sockalexis
when it assumed its current name in 1915. Sockalexis, a Native American
, had played in Cleveland 1897–99. Research indicates that this legend is mostly untrue, and that the new name was a play on the name of the Boston Braves
, then known as the "Miracle Braves" after going from last place on July 4 to a sweep in the 1914 World Series
. Proponents of the name acknowledged that the Cleveland Spiders
of the National League
had sometimes been informally called the "Indians" during Sockalexis' short career there, a fact which merely reinforced the new name.
At the same time, Somers' business ventures began to fail, leaving him deeply in debt. With the Indians playing poorly, attendance and revenue suffered. Somers decided to trade Jackson midway through the 1915 season for two players and $31,500, one of the largest sums paid for a player at the time.
By , Somers was at the end of his tether, and sold the team to a syndicate headed by Chicago railroad contractor James C. "Jack" Dunn. Manager Lee Fohl, who had taken over in early 1915, acquired two minor league pitchers, Stan Coveleski
and Jim Bagby
and traded for center fielder Tris Speaker
, who was engaged in a salary dispute with the Red Sox
. All three would ultimately become key players in bringing a championship to Cleveland.
Speaker took over the reins as player-manager in , and would lead the team to a championship in 1920. On August 16, the Indians were playing the Yankees at the Polo Grounds
in New York. Shortstop Ray Chapman
, who often crowded the plate, was batting against Carl Mays
, who had an unusual underhand delivery. It was also late in the afternoon and the infield would have been in shadow with the center field area (the batters' background) bathed in sunlight. As well, at the time, "part of every pitcher's job was to dirty up a new ball the moment it was thrown onto the field. By turns, they smeared it with dirt, licorice, tobacco juice; it was deliberately scuffed, sandpapered, scarred, cut, even spiked. The result was a misshapen, earth-colored ball that traveled through the air erratically, tended to soften in the later innings, and as it came over the plate, was very hard to see."
In any case, Chapman did not move reflexively when Mays' pitch came his way. The pitch hit Chapman in the head, fracturing his skull. Chapman died the next day, becoming the only player to sustain a fatal injury from a pitched ball. The Indians, who at the time were locked in a tight three-way pennant race with the Yankees and White Sox, were not slowed down by the death of their teammate. Rookie Joe Sewell
hit .329 after replacing Chapman in the lineup.
In September 1920, the Black Sox Scandal
came to a boil. With just a few games left in the season, and Cleveland and Chicago neck-and-neck for first place at 94–54 and 95–56 respectively, the Chicago owner suspended eight players. The White Sox lost 2 of 3 in their final series, while Cleveland won 4 and lost 2 in their final two series. Cleveland finished 2 games ahead of Chicago and 3 games ahead of the Yankees to win its first pennant, led by Speaker's .388 hitting
, Jim Bagby's 30 victories
and solid performances from Steve O'Neill
and Stan Coveleski. Cleveland went on to defeat the Brooklyn Robins 5–2 in the World Series
for their first title, winning four games in a row after the Robins took a 2–1 Series lead. The Series included three memorable "firsts", all of them in Game 5 at Cleveland, and all by the home team. In the first inning, right fielder Elmer Smith hit the first Series grand slam. In the fourth inning, Jim Bagby
hit the first Series home run by a pitcher. And in the top of the fifth inning, second baseman Bill Wambsganss
executed the first (and only, so far) unassisted triple play in World Series history, in fact the only Series triple play of any kind.
The team would not reach the heights of 1920 again for 28 years. Speaker and Coveleski were aging and the Yankees were rising with a new weapon: Babe Ruth
and the home run
. They managed two second-place finishes but spent much of the decade in the cellar. In 1927 Dunn's widow, Mrs. George Pross (Dunn had died in 1922), sold the team to a syndicate headed by Alva Bradley
.
, who came from Iowa
with a dominating fastball
. That season, Feller set a record with 17 strikeouts in a single game and went on to lead the league in strikeouts from 1938–1941. According to Fundamentals of Physics
( 4 ed., Wiley
, 1993 ), by David Halliday, Robert Resnick
and Jearl Walker
, on page 30, Chapter Two, " Motion along a Straight Line ", Joe Sprinz
, at the time in question, a member of the San Francisco Ball Club, and formerly of the Indians, attempted to beat the World Record
for catching a baseball dropped from a great height, set by members of the 1938 Cleveland Indians, who had done so at 700 feet, with balls dropped from a building. On a day in 1939, Sprinz had a blimp hover overhead at 800 feet, from which were to be dropped balls for him to catch. On his fifth attempt, a baseball entered his glove at what could be estimated to be up to 154 mph. It slammed his glove hand into his face with such force, that he broke his upper jaw in twelve places, fractured five of his teeth, and was rendered unconscious. He also dropped the ball. By , Feller, along with Ken Keltner
, Mel Harder
and Lou Boudreau
led the Indians to within one game of the pennant. However, the team was wracked with dissension, with some players (including Feller and Mel Harder
) going so far as to request that Bradley fire manager Ossie Vitt
. Reporters lampooned them as the Cleveland Crybabies. Feller, who had pitched a no-hitter
to open the season and won 27 games, lost the final game of the season to unknown pitcher Floyd Giebell of the Detroit Tigers
. The Tigers won the pennant and Giebell never won another major league game.
Cleveland entered 1941 with a young team and a new manager; Roger Peckinpaugh
had replaced the despised Vitt; but the team regressed, finishing in fourth. Cleveland would soon be depleted of two stars. Hal Trosky
retired in 1941 due to migraine headaches and Bob Feller enlisted in the Navy
two days after the Attack on Pearl Harbor
. Starting third baseman Ken Keltner
and outfielder Ray Mack
were both drafted in 1945 taking two more starters out of the lineup.
formed an investment group that purchased the Cleveland Indians from Bradley's group for a reported $1.6 million. Among the investors was Bob Hope
, who had grown up in Cleveland, and former Tigers slugger, Hank Greenberg
.
A former owner of a minor league franchise in Milwaukee, Veeck brought to Cleveland a gift for promotion. At one point, Veeck hired rubber-faced Max Patkin
, the "Clown Prince of Baseball" as a coach. Patkin's appearance in the coaching box was the sort of promotional stunt that delighted fans but infuriated the American League front office.
Recognizing that he had acquired a solid team, Veeck soon abandoned the aging, small and lightless League Park to take up full-time residence in massive Cleveland Municipal Stadium. Prior to 1947 the Indians played most of their games at League Park, and occasionally played weekend games at Cleveland Municipal Stadium. League Park was demolished in 1951, although a portion of the original ticket booth remains.
Making the most of the cavernous stadium, Veeck had a portable center field fence installed, which he could move in or out depending on how the distance favored the Indians against their opponents in a given series. The fence moved as much as 15 feet (5 m) between series opponents. Following the 1947 season, the American League countered with a rule change that fixed the distance of an outfield wall for the duration of a season. The massive stadium did, however, permit the Indians to set the then record for the largest crowd to see a Major League baseball game. On October 10, 1948, Game 5 of the World Series
against the Boston Braves drew over 84,000. The record stood until the Los Angeles Dodgers
drew a crowd in excess of 92,500 to watch Game 5 of the 1959 World Series
at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
against the Chicago White Sox
.
Under Veeck's leadership, one of Cleveland's most significant achievements was breaking the color barrier
in the American League
by signing Larry Doby
, formerly a player for the Negro League's Newark Eagles
in , eleven weeks after Jackie Robinson
signed with the Dodgers. Similar to Robinson, Doby battled racism on and off the field but posted a .301 batting average in 1948, his first full season. A power-hitting center fielder, Doby led the American League twice in homers.
In 1948, needing pitching for the stretch run of the pennant race, Veeck turned to the Negro League again and signed pitching great Satchel Paige
amid much controversy. Barred from Major League Baseball during his prime, Veeck's signing of the aging star in 1948 was viewed by many as another publicity stunt. At an official age of 42, Paige became the oldest rookie in Major League baseball history, and the first black pitcher. Paige soon proved he could still pitch and ended the year with a 6–1 record with a 2.48 ERA, 45 strikeouts and two shutouts.
In , veterans Boudreau, Keltner, and Joe Gordon had career offensive seasons, while newcomers Larry Doby
and Gene Bearden
also had standout seasons. The team went down to the wire with the Boston Red Sox
, winning a one-game playoff, the first in American League history, to go to the World Series. In the series, the Indians defeated the Boston Braves four games to two for their first championship in 28 years. Boudreau won the American League MVP Award.
The Indians would appear in a film the following year
titled The Kid From Cleveland
, in which Veeck had an interest. The film portrayed the team helping out a "troubled teenaged fan" and featured many members of the Indians organization. However, filming during the season cost the players valuable rest days leading to fatigue towards the end of the season. That season, Cleveland again contended before falling to third place. On September 23, 1949, Bill Veeck and the Indians buried their 1948 pennant in center field the day after they were mathematically eliminated from the pennant race.
Later in 1949, Veeck's first wife (who had a half-stake in Veeck's share of the team) divorced him. With most of his money tied up in the Indians, Veeck was forced to sell the team to a syndicate headed by insurance magnate Ellis Ryan. Ryan was forced out in in favor of Myron Wilson, who in turn gave way to William Daley in . Despite this turnover in the ownership, a powerhouse team composed of Feller, Doby, Minnie Miñoso, Luke Easter, Bobby Avila
, Al Rosen
, Early Wynn
, Bob Lemon
, and Mike Garcia continued to contend through the early 1950s. However, Cleveland only won a single pennant in the decade, finishing second to the New York Yankees
five times.
The best season in franchise history came in , when the Indians finished the season with a record of 111-43 (.721). That mark set an American League record for wins which stood for 44 years until the New York Yankees
won 114 games in 1998. The Indians 1954 winning percentage of .721 is still an American League record. The Indians returned to the World Series
to face the New York Giants
. The team could not bring home the title, however, ultimately being upset by the Giants in a sweep. The series was notable for Willie Mays
' famous over-the-shoulder catch off the bat of Vic Wertz
in Game 1.
, known as "Trader" Lane, away from the St. Louis Cardinals
in 1957. Lane over the years had gained a reputation as a GM who loved to make deals. With the White Sox, Lane had made over 100 trades involving over 400 players in seven years. In a short stint in St. Louis, he traded away Red Schoendienst
and Harvey Haddix
. Lane summed up his philosophy when he said that the only deals he regretted were the ones that he didn't make.
One of Lane's early trades in Cleveland was to send Roger Maris
to the Kansas City Athletics
in the middle of 1958. Indians executive Hank Greenberg
was not happy about the trade and neither was Maris, who said that he could not stand Lane. After Maris broke Babe Ruth's home run record, Lane defended himself by saying he still would have done the deal because Maris was unknown and he received good ballplayers in exchange.
After the Maris trade, Lane acquired 25-year old Norm Cash
from the White Sox for Minnie Miñoso and then traded him to Detroit before he ever played a game for the Indians; Cash went on to hit over 350 home runs for the Tigers. The Indians received Steve Demeter
in the deal, who would have only five at-bats for Cleveland.
to the Detroit Tigers
for Harvey Kuenn
just before Opening Day
in .
It was a blockbuster trade that swapped the AL home run co-champion (Colavito) for the AL batting champion (Kuenn). After the trade, however, Colavito hit over 30 home runs four times and made three All-Star teams for Detroit and Kansas City before returning to Cleveland in . Kuenn, on the other hand, would play only one season for the Indians before departing for San Francisco
in a trade for an aging Johnny Antonelli
and Willie Kirkland
. Akron Beacon Journal
columnist Terry Pluto
documented the decades of woe that followed the trade in his book The Curse of Rocky Colavito. Despite being attached to the curse, Colavito said that he never placed a curse on the Indians but that the trade was prompted by a salary dispute with Lane.
Lane also engineered a unique trade of managers in mid-season 1960, sending Joe Gordon to the Tigers in exchange for Jimmy Dykes
. Lane left the team in 1961, but ill-advised trades continued. In 1965, the Indians traded pitcher Tommy John
, who would go on to win 288 games in his career, and 1966 Rookie of the Year Tommy Agee to the White Sox to get Colavito back.
, Dennis Eckersley
, Buddy Bell
and 1971 Rookie of the Year Chris Chambliss
, for a number of players who made no impact.
Constant ownership changes did not help the Indians. In 1963, Daley's syndicate sold the team to a group headed by general manager Gabe Paul
. Three years later, Paul sold the Indians to Vernon Stouffer
, of the Stouffer's
frozen-food empire. Prior to Stouffer's purchase, the team was rumored to be relocated due to poor attendance. Despite the potential for a financially strong owner, Stouffer had some non-baseball related financial setbacks and, consequently, the team was cash-poor. In order to solve some financial problems, Stouffer had made an agreement to play a minimum of 30 home games in New Orleans with a view to a possible move there. After rejecting an offer from George Steinbrenner
and former Indian Al Rosen
, Stouffer sold the team in 1972 to a group led by Cleveland Cavaliers
and Cleveland Barons owner Nick Mileti
. Steinbrenner went on to buy the New York Yankees in 1973.
Only five years later, Mileti's group sold the team for $11 million to a syndicate headed by trucking magnate Steve O'Neill and including former general manager and owner Gabe Paul. O'Neill's death in 1983 led to the team going on the market once more. His son, Patrick O'Neill, did not find a buyer until real estate magnates Richard and David Jacobs purchased the team in 1986.
The team was unable to move out of the cellar, with losing seasons between 1969 and 1975. One highlight was the acquisition of Gaylord Perry
in . The Indians traded fireballer "Sudden Sam" McDowell
for Perry, who became the first Indian pitcher to win the Cy Young Award
. In , Cleveland broke another color barrier with the hiring of Frank Robinson
as Major League Baseball's first African American
manager. Robinson served as player-manager and would provide a franchise highlight when he hit a pinch hit home run on Opening Day
. But the high profile signing of Wayne Garland
, a 20-game winner in Baltimore
, proved to be a disaster after Garland suffered from shoulder problems and went 28–48 over five years. The team failed to improve with Robinson as manager and he was fired in . In 1977, pitcher Dennis Eckersley
threw a no-hitter against the California Angels
. The next season, he would be dealt to the Boston Red Sox
where he won 20 games in 1978 and another 17 in 1979.
The 1970s also featured the infamous Ten Cent Beer Night
at Cleveland Municipal Stadium. The ill-conceived promotion at a game against the Texas Rangers
ended in a riot by fans and a forfeit by the Indians.
There were more bright spots in the 1980s. In May 1981, Len Barker
threw a perfect game
against the Toronto Blue Jays
, joining Addie Joss as the only other Indian pitcher to do so. "Super Joe" Charbonneau
won the American League Rookie of the Year award. Unfortunately, Charboneau was out of baseball by 1983 after falling victim to back injuries and Barker, who was also hampered by injuries, never became a consistently dominant starting pitcher.
Eventually, the Indians traded Barker to the Atlanta Braves
for Brett Butler and Brook Jacoby
, who would become mainstays of the team for the remainder of the decade. Butler and Jacoby were joined by Joe Carter
, Mel Hall
, Julio Franco
and Cory Snyder
, which brought new hope to fans in the late 1980s.
Cleveland's struggles over the 30-year span were highlighted in the 1989 film Major League
, which comically depicted a hapless Cleveland ball club going from worst to first by the end of the film.
Finally, in May 1990, Cuyahoga County
voters passed an excise tax
on sales of alcohol and cigarettes in the county. The tax proceeds would be used to finance the building of the Gateway Sports and Entertainment Complex
which would include Jacobs Field
and Gund Arena
for the Cleveland Cavaliers
basketball team. The team had new ownership and a new stadium on the way. They now needed a winning team.
The team's fortunes started to turn in , ironically with a very unpopular trade. The team sent power-hitting outfielder Joe Carter
to the San Diego Padres
for two unproven players, Sandy Alomar, Jr.
and Carlos Baerga
. Alomar made an immediate impact, not only being elected to the All-Star team
but also winning Cleveland's fourth Rookie of the Year
award and a Gold Glove
. Baerga would become a three-time All-Star with consistent offensive production.
Indians general manager John Hart
made a number of moves that would finally bring success to the team. In , he hired former Indian Mike Hargrove
to manage
and traded catcher Eddie Taubensee
to the Houston Astros
who, with a surplus of outfielders, were willing to part with Kenny Lofton
. Lofton finished second in AL Rookie of the Year balloting with a .285 average and 66 stolen bases.
The Indians were named "Organization of the Year" by Baseball America in 1992, in response to the appearance of offensive bright spots and an improving farm system
.
The team suffered a tragedy during spring training
of , when a boat carrying pitchers Steve Olin
, Tim Crews
, and Bob Ojeda
crashed into a pier. Olin and Crews were killed, and Ojeda was seriously injured. (Ojeda missed most of the season, and would retire the following year).
By the end of the 1993 season, the team was in transition, leaving Cleveland Stadium and fielding a talented nucleus of young players. Many of those players came from the Indians' new AAA
farm team, the Charlotte Knights
, who won the International League
title that year.
Indians General Manager John Hart
and team owner Richard Jacobs managed to turn the team's fortunes around. The Indians opened Jacobs Field in 1994 with the aim of improving on the prior season's sixth-place finish. The Indians were only one game behind the division-leading Chicago White Sox
on August 12 when a players strike wiped out the rest of the season.
, Orel Hershiser
and Eddie Murray
combined with a young core of players including Albert Belle
, Jim Thome
, Manny Ramírez
and Charles Nagy
to lead the league in team batting average as well as team ERA.
After defeating the Boston Red Sox
in the Division Series
and the Seattle Mariners
in the ALCS
, Cleveland clinched a World Series
berth, for the first time since 1954. The World Series ended in disappointment with the Indians falling in six games to the Atlanta Braves
.
in the Division Series
. Notably in 1996, tickets for every home game for the Indians sold out before opening day.
, 3–2. After defeating the Baltimore Orioles in the ALCS
, Cleveland went on to face the Florida Marlins
in the World Series
which featured the coldest game in World Series history. With the series tied after game six, the Indians went into the ninth inning of Game 7 with a 2–1 lead, but closer Jose Mesa
allowed the Marlins to tie the game. In the eleventh inning, Edgar Rentería
drove in the winning run giving the Marlins their first championship.
Cleveland became the first team to lose the World Series after carrying the lead into the bottom of the ninth inning of the seventh game.
, the Indians made the playoffs for the fourth straight year. After defeating the wild-card Boston Red Sox
three games to one in the first round of the playoffs
, Cleveland lost the 1998 ALCS
in six games to the New York Yankees, who had come into the playoffs with 114 wins in the regular season.
and Roberto Alomar
, brother of catcher Sandy Alomar, and won the Central Division title for its fifth consecutive playoff appearance. The team scored 1,009 runs, becoming the first (and to date only) team since the 1950 Boston Red Sox to score more than 1,000 runs in a season. This time, Cleveland did not make it past the first round, losing the Division Series
to the Red Sox
, despite taking a two-games-to-none lead in the series. In game three, Indians starter Dave Burba went down with an injury in the 4th inning. Four pitchers, including presumed game four starter Jaret Wright
, surrendered nine runs in relief. Without a long reliever or emergency starter on the playoff roster, Hargrove started both Bartolo Colón
and Charles Nagy
in games four and five on only three days rest. The Indians lost game four 23–7 and game five 12–8. Four days later, Hargrove was dismissed as manager.
, the Indians had a 44–42 start, but caught fire after the All Star break and went 46–30 the rest of the way to finish 90–72. The team had one of the league's best offenses that year and a defense that yielded three gold gloves. However, they ended up five games behind the Chicago White Sox
in the Central division and missed the wild card by one game to the Seattle Mariners
. Mid-season trades brought Bob Wickman
and Jake Westbrook
to Cleveland, and free agent Manny Ramírez
departed for Boston after the season.
The Indians set a Major League record for most pitchers used in a single season. Colon, Burba, and Chuck Finley
posted strong seasons, and the bullpen was solid. But with Jaret Wright and Charles Nagy spending months on the disabled list, the team could not solidify the final two spots in the rotation. Other starting pitchers that season combined for a total of 346⅔ innings and 265 earned runs for an ERA of 6.88.
In 2000, Larry Dolan
bought the Indians for $320 million from Richard Jacobs, who, along with his late brother David, had paid $45 million for the club in 1986. The sale set a record at the time for the sale of a baseball franchise.
saw a return to the playoffs. After the departures of Manny Ramírez
and Sandy Alomar, Jr.
, the Indians signed Ellis Burks and former MVP
Juan González, who helped the Indians win the Central division with a 91–71 record.
One of the highlights came on August 5, 2001, when the Indians completed the biggest comeback in MLB History. Cleveland rallied to close a 14–2 deficit in the sixth inning to defeat the Seattle Mariners
15–14 in 11 innings. The Mariners, who won a record 116 games that season, had a strong bullpen, and Indians manager Charlie Manuel
had already pulled many of his starters with the game seemingly out of reach.
Seattle and Cleveland met in the first round of the playoffs
, with the Indians taking a two-games-to-one lead. However, with Freddy Garcia, Jamie Moyer and a strong bullpen, the Mariners won Games 4 and 5 to deny the Indians their first playoff series victory since 1998. In the 2001 offseason, GM John Hart
resigned and his assistant Mark Shapiro
took the reins.
to the New York Mets
for a package that included outfielder Matt Lawton
and prospects Alex Escobar
and Billy Traber
. When the team fell out of contention in mid-, Shapiro fired manager Charlie Manuel
and traded pitching ace Bartolo Colón
for prospects Brandon Phillips
, Cliff Lee
, and Grady Sizemore
; acquired Travis Hafner
from the Rangers
for Ryan Drese
and Einar Diaz
; and picked up Coco Crisp
from the St. Louis Cardinals
for aging starter Chuck Finley
. Jim Thome
left after the season, going to the Phillies for a larger contract.
Young Indians teams finished far out of contention in 2002 and under new manager Eric Wedge
. They posted strong offensive numbers in , but continued to struggle with a bullpen that blew more than 20 saves
. A highlight of the season was a 22–0 victory over the New York Yankees
on August 31, one of the worst defeats suffered by the Yankees in team history.
In early , the offense got off to a poor start. After a brief July slump, the Indians caught fire in August, and cut a 15.5 game deficit in the Central Division down to 1.5 games. However, the season came to a end as the Indians went on to lose six of their last seven games, five of them by one run, missing the playoffs by only two games. Shapiro was named Executive of the Year
in 2005. The next season
, the club made several roster changes, while retaining its nucleus of young players. The off-season was highlighted by the acquisition of top prospect Andy Marté
from the Boston Red Sox
. The Indians had a solid offensive season, led by career years from Travis Hafner
and Grady Sizemore
. Hafner, despite missing the last month of the season, tied the single season grand slam
record of six, which was set in by Don Mattingly
. Despite the solid offensive performance, the bullpen struggled with 23 blown saves (a Major League worst), and the Indians finished a disappointing fourth.
In , Shapiro signed veteran help for the bullpen and outfield in the offseason. Veterans Aaron Fultz
, and Joe Borowski joined Rafael Betancourt
in the Indians bullpen. The Indians improved significantly over the prior year and went into the All-Star break in second place. The team brought back Kenny Lofton
for his third stint with the team in late July. The Indians finished with a 96–66 record tied with the Red Sox for best in baseball, their seventh Central Division title in 13 years and their first post-season trip since 2001.
The Indians began their playoff run by defeating the New York Yankees in the American League Division Series
three games to one. This series will be most remembered for the swarm of bugs that overtook the field in the later innings of game 2. They also jumped out to a three-games-to-one lead over the Red Sox in the American League Championship Series
. The season ended in disappointment when Boston swept the final three games to advance to the 2007 World Series
.
Despite the loss, Cleveland players took home a number of awards. Grady Sizemore
, who had a .995 fielding percentage
and only two errors in 405 chances, won the Gold Glove award
, Cleveland's first since 2001. Indians Pitcher CC Sabathia won the second Cy Young Award
in team history with a 19–7 record, a 3.21 ERA and an MLB-leading 241 innings pitched
. Eric Wedge
was awarded the first Manager of the Year Award
in team history. Shapiro was named to his second Executive of the Year
in 2007.
and Victor Martinez, as well as starting pitchers Jake Westbrook
and Fausto Carmona
led to a poor start. The Indians, falling to last place for a short time in June and July, traded CC Sabathia to the Milwaukee Brewers
for prospects Matt LaPorta, Rob Bryson, and Michael Brantley. and traded starting third basemen, Casey Blake, for catching prospect Carlos Santana. Pitcher Cliff Lee
went 22-3 with an ERA of 2.54 and earned the AL Cy Young Award. Grady Sizemore
had a career year, winning a Gold Glove and Silver Slugger
, and the Indians finished with a record of 81-81.
Prospects for the 2009 season dimmed early when the Indians ended May with a record of 22-30. Shapiro made multiple trades: Cliff Lee and Ben Francisco to the Philadelphia Phillies for prospects Jason Knapp, Carlos Carrasco, Jason Donald and Lou Marson; Victor Martinez to the Boston Red Sox for prospects Bryan Price, Nick Hagadone and Justin Masterson; Ryan Garko to the Texas Rangers for Scott Barnes; and Kelly Shoppach to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays for Mitch Talbot. The Indians finished the season tied for last in their division,
with a record of 65-97. The team announced on September 30, 2009, that Eric Wedge and all of the team's coaching staff would be released at the end of the 2009 season. Manny Acta
was hired as the team's 40th manager on October 25, 2009.
On February 18, 2010, it was announced that Shapiro (following the end of the 2010 season) will be promoted to team President, with current President Paul Dolan becoming the new Chairman/CEO, and longtime Shapiro assistant Chris Antonetti
filling the GM role.
was brought in as a special advisor.
baseball
game, which pitted the Ohio
rivals Cleveland Indians and Cincinnati Reds
.
In its first series it was a single-game cup, played each year at minor-league Cooper Stadium
in Columbus, Ohio
, was staged just days before the start of each new Major League Baseball
season. A total of eight Ohio Cup games were played, in 1989 to 1996, with the Indians winning six of them. It stopped because interleague play
started in 1997. The winner of the game each year was awarded the Ohio Cup in postgame ceremonies. The Ohio Cup was a favorite among baseball fans in Columbus, with attendances regularly topping 15,000.
In 1997 and after, the two teams competed annually in the regular-season Battle of Ohio or Buckeye Series. In 2008 the Ohio Cup restarted.
The Indians currently lead the interleague series 38–35.
The Indians' home uniform is white with navy piping around the neck and down either side of the buttons on the front of the jersey; the navy piping is also located around each sleeve. Across the front of the jersey in script font is the word "Indians" in red with a navy and white outline. The jersey has the Chief Wahoo logo on the left sleeve. The home cap and batting helmet are navy blue with a red bill and feature the Chief Wahoo logo on the front.
The road uniform is gray, with "Cleveland" in navy blue block letters trimmed in red is across the front of the jersey, navy blue piping around the sleeves, and the Chief Wahoo logo located on the left sleeve. The road cap and batting helmet are navy blue with a red block "C" on the front.
The alternate home uniform is cream colored with "Indians" across the front in red block lettering with a dark navy blue outline. The Chief Wahoo logo is located on the left sleeve. This jersey is the only Indians jersey to not have the players' names on the back. The alternate home cap is red with a navy blue block "C" on the front (the Chief Wahoo batting helmet is still used). This uniform is worn during weekend and holiday home games.
The alternate road jersey is navy blue with white piping around the neck and down either side of the buttons on the front of the jersey; the white piping is also located around each sleeve. Script "Indians" is located across the front of the jersey in the same fashion as the home uniform; the Chief Wahoo logo is on the left sleeve. The alternate road cap is navy blue with the Chief Wahoo logo on the front (the block "C" batting helmet is used for all road games). The blue jersey is also worn during Tuesday home games with the standard home cap and helmet.
For 2012, the navy piping around the neck and on the front of the home jersey will be removed. In addition, the script "Indians" across the front will be outlined in navy only; the font has been modified slightly, as well. The alternate road jersey will undergo similar changes; the front and neck piping will be removed and the script "Indians" will be outlined only in white.
at nearly every home game since 1973. He is the only fan for whom the team has dedicated a bobble head
day. Adams originally paid for his tickets (one for himself, and one for his drum), but recently the Indians have paid for his seats in honor of the contributions he has made to the ballpark atmosphere. He has been featured in an interview segment in a 1997
episode of This Week In Baseball
.
on at least three separate occasions. The sellout streak set a Major League Baseball record; this was broken by the Boston Red Sox
on September 8, 2008, though Boston's Fenway Park
is considerably smaller than Progressive Field. The team's success during the late 1990s would even lead comedian and Cleveland native Drew Carey
to quip, "Finally it's your team that sucks!" The Indians honored their loyal fans by retiring the number 455 with the name 455 The Fans.
for perpetuating Native American stereotypes. In 1997, during the team's most recent World Series
appearance, three Native
protesters were arrested, but later acquitted.
AM 1100. Tom Hamilton
and Mike Hegan
are the primary radio announcers, with Jim Rosenhaus (pregame host, producer/engineer) calling the middle innings. Hegan retired from his radio post at the end of the season (he will remain with the team as an alumni ambassador).
Select games can be heard on WMMS
FM 100.7 when there is a conflict with Cleveland Cavaliers
basketball games, which also air on WTAM. If the Cavaliers are in the playoffs, all conflicted Indians games go to WMMS. WMMS will also air Spring training
games if there's a conflict with the Cavaliers on WTAM.
The television rights are held by SportsTime Ohio
(STO), a network launched in by the Indians. Matt Underwood
and former Indians Gold Glove winning CF Rick Manning
form the announcing team, with Al Pawlowski
as the pregame/postgame host and update anchor during the game, and former Indians LHP Jason Stanford
as pregame analyst. Palowski also calls about 10–12 games per year to allow Underwood to take time off, and WKYC weekend sports anchor Dave Chudowsky then fills Palowski's role. Former Indians 1B and manager, and current special advisor Mike Hargrove
will work select TV games as an analyst to allow Manning some time off. STO's Katie Witham serves as field reporter during home games. Twenty games a year are shown on free TV, originating on WKYC channel 3 (NBC
), (STO also airs the WKYC games via simulcast).
Past Indians broadcasters include Tom Manning
, Jack Graney
(the first ex-baseball player to become a play-by-play announcer), Jack Corrigan (now with the Colorado Rockies), Jimmy Dudley
who received the Ford Frick Award in 1997, Ken Coleman
, Joe Castiglione
, Van Patrick
, Joe Tait
, Bruce Drennan
, Jim "Mudcat" Grant
, Harry Jones, Rocky Colavito
and Herb Score
, who called Indians' baseball for 34 seasons.
Jackie Robinson's number 42 is retired throughout Major League Baseball.
The number 455 was honored after the Indians sold out 455 consecutive games between 1995 and 2001, which was an MLB record until it was surpassed by the Boston Red Sox
on September 8, 2008.
----
Professional baseball
Baseball is a team sport which is played by several professional leagues throughout the world. In these leagues, and associated farm teams, players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system....
based in Cleveland, Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
. They are in the Central Division
American League Central
The American League Central Division is one of six divisions in Major League Baseball. This division was formed in the realignment in 1994, and its teams are all located in the Midwestern United States...
of Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
's American League
American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the American League , is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league based in the Great Lakes states, which eventually aspired to major...
. Since , they have played in Progressive Field. The team's spring training
Spring training
In Major League Baseball, spring training is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for roster and position spots, and gives existing team players practice time prior to competitive play...
facility is in Goodyear, Arizona
Goodyear, Arizona
Goodyear is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States. According to the 2010 census, the population of the city is 65,275...
. Since their establishment as a Major League franchise in 1901, the Indians have won two World Series
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball, played between the American League and National League champions since 1903. The winner of the World Series championship is determined through a best-of-seven playoff and awarded the Commissioner's Trophy...
championships, in 1920
1920 World Series
-Game 1:Tuesday, October 5, 1920 at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn, New York-Game 2:Wednesday, October 6, 1920 at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn, New York-Game 3:Thursday, October 7, 1920 at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn, New York-Game 4:...
and 1948
1948 World Series
The 1948 World Series matched the Cleveland Indians against the Boston Braves. The Braves had won the National League pennant for the first time since the "Miracle Braves" team of . The Indians spoiled a chance for the only all-Boston World Series by winning a one-game playoff against the Boston...
.
The "Indians" name originates from a request by the club owner to decide on a new name, following the 1914 season. In reference to the Boston Braves (now the Atlanta Braves
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves are a professional baseball club based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Braves have played in Turner Field since 1997....
), the media chose "the Indians". Common nicknames for the Indians include the "Tribe" and the "Wahoos," the latter being a reference to their logo, Chief Wahoo
Chief Wahoo
Chief Wahoo is a trademarked logo for the Cleveland Indians baseball team. The illustration is a Native American cartoon caricature.Although the club had adopted the name "Indians" starting with the 1915 season, there was no acknowledgment of this nickname on their uniforms until 1928...
; The mascot is called Slider.
The Cleveland team originated in 1900 as the Lake Shores, when the American League (AL) was officially a minor league. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the major league incarnation of the club was founded in Cleveland in . Originally called the Cleveland Bluebirds, the team played in League Park
League Park
League Park was a baseball park located in Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It was situated at the northeast corner of Lexington Avenue and E. 66th Street in the Hough neighborhood. It was home to the National League Cleveland Spiders, the American League Cleveland Indians, and the Cleveland...
until moving permanently to Cleveland Municipal Stadium in . At the end of the 2010 season, they had a regular season franchise record of 8,691–8,367 (.509). The Indians have won seven AL Central titles, the most in the division.
Cleveland baseball prior to the Indians franchise
"In 1857 baseball games were a daily spectacle in Cleveland's Public Squares. City authorities tried to find an ordinance forbidding it, to the joy of the crowd, they were unsuccessful. - Harold Seymour"1865-1868 Forest Citys of Cleveland (Minor League)
1869-1872 Forest Citys of Cleveland
From 1865 to 1868 Forest Citys was a amateur club ball club. During the 1869
1869 in baseball
-Champions:*National Association of Base Ball Players: Atlantic of Brooklyn-Events:* March 15 - The first professional baseball club is formed as the Cincinnati Red Stockings....
season, Cleveland was among several cities which established professional baseball teams following the success of the 1869 Cincinnati Red Stockings
Cincinnati Red Stockings
The Cincinnati Red Stockings of were baseball's first fully professional team, with ten salaried players. The Cincinnati Base Ball Club formed in 1866 and fielded competitive teams in the National Association of Base Ball Players 1867–1870, a time of a transition that ambitious Cincinnati,...
, the first fully professional team. In the newspapers before and after 1870, the team was often called the Forest Citys
Cleveland Forest Citys
The Forest Citys were a short lived professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio in the early 1870s. The actual name of the team, as shown in standings, was Forest City, not "Cleveland". The name "Forest Citys" was used in the same generic style of the day in which the team from Chicago,...
, in the same generic way that the team from Chicago was sometimes called The Chicagos.
In 1871
1871 in baseball
-Champions:*National Association : Philadelphia Athletics*National Association of Amateur Base Ball Players: Star of Brooklyn, 30–13*National Association of Junior Base Ball Players: Fly Aways-National Association final standings:...
the Forest Citys joined the new National Association of Professional Base Ball Players
National Association of Professional Base Ball Players
The National Association of Professional Base Ball Players , or simply the National Association , was founded in 1871 and continued through the 1875 season...
(NA), the first professional league. Ultimately, two of the league's western clubs went out of business during the first season and the Chicago Fire left that city's White Stockings
Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs are a professional baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League. They are one of two Major League clubs based in Chicago . The Cubs are also one of the two remaining charter members of the National...
impoverished, unable to field a team again until 1874
1874 in baseball
-Champions:*National Association: Boston Red Stockings-National Association final standings:-Statistical leaders:-January-March:*January 29 - Albert Spalding arrives in England to set up a tour for the Boston Red Stockings and Philadelphia Athletics to demonstrate American baseball to the...
. Cleveland was thus the NA's westernmost outpost in 1872
1872 in baseball
- Champions :* National Association: Boston Red Stockings- National Association final standings :-Statistical leaders:- January–March :* March 4 – At its annual convention being held in Cleveland, the NA adopts a rule change to allow the use of the wrist in the pitching delivery.- April–June :*...
, the year the club folded. Cleveland played their full schedule to July 19 followed by two games versus Boston in mid-August and disbanded at the end of the season.
1879-1881 Cleveland Forest Citys
1882-1884 Cleveland Blues ①
In 1876
1876 in baseball
After a tumultuous six-year existence, the National Association of Professional Base Ball Players , folded following the season. The National League of Professional Base Ball Clubs was formed in Chicago, Illinois by businessman, and owner of the Chicago White Stockings, William Hulbert, for the...
, the National League
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional...
(NL) supplanted the NA as the major professional league. Cleveland was not among its charter members, but by 1879
1879 in baseball
-Champions:*National League: Providence GraysNational Association: Albany Blue StockingsNorthwest League: Dubuque RabbitsInter-league playoff: Providence Grays def. Albany Blues , 2 games to 0.-National League final standings:-Statistical leaders:...
the league was looking for new entries and the city gained an NL team. The Cleveland Forest Citys baseball team was then re-created. The National League required distinct colors for the 1882 season, so the Cleveland Forest Citys became the Cleveland Blues
Cleveland Blues (NL)
The Cleveland Blues were a Major League Baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio that operated in the National League from 1879 to 1884. In six seasons their best finish was third place in 1880. Hugh Daily threw a no-hitter for the Blues on Sept. 13, 1883. Besides Daily, notable Blues players...
. They then had a mediocre record for six seasons and were ruined by a trade war with the Union Association
Union Association
The Union Association was a league in Major League Baseball which lasted for only one season in 1884. St. Louis won the pennant and joined the National League the following season...
(UA) in 1884
1884 in baseball
-Champions:*First World's Championship Series: Providence Grays over New York Metropolitans *National League: Providence Grays*American Association: New York Metropolitans*Union Association: St...
, when its three best players (Fred Dunlap
Fred Dunlap
Frederick C. "Sure Shot" Dunlap was a second baseman and manager in Major League Baseball from 1880 to 1891. He was the highest paid player in Major League Baseball from 1884 to 1889. He has also been rated by some contemporary and modern sources as the greatest overall second baseman of the...
, Jack Glasscock
Jack Glasscock
John Wesley "Jack" Glasscock was an American shortstop in Major League Baseball who played for several teams from 1879 to 1895 and was the top player at his position in the 1880s during the sport's bare-handed era...
, and Jim McCormick) jumped to the UA after being offered higher salaries. Cleveland Blues merged with the St. Louis Maroons UA team in 1885
1885 in baseball
-Champions:*Post-season playoff: Chicago White Stockings played St. Louis Browns. Series ended with both teams going 3-3-1 in a best-of-7 series. Game 1 ended in a tie called after 8 inning due to darkness; Game 2 was awarded to Chicago by forfeit after 6 innings because St. Louis refused to...
.
1887-1899 Cleveland Spiders — nickname "Blues" ②
Cleveland went without major league baseball for two seasons until gaining a team in the American Association
American Association (19th century)
The American Association was a Major League Baseball league that existed for 10 seasons from to . During that time, it challenged the National League for dominance of professional baseball...
(AA) in 1887
1887 in baseball
-National League final standings:-American Association final standings:-National League statistical leaders:-American Association statistical leaders:-January–March:...
. After the AA's Allegheny club
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates are a Major League Baseball club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They play in the Central Division of the National League, and are five-time World Series Champions...
jumped to the NL Cleveland followed suit in 1889
1889 in baseball
-Champions:*World Series: New York Giants 6, Brooklyn Bridegrooms 3*National League: New York Giants*American Association: Brooklyn Bridegrooms-National League final standings:-American Association final standings:-National League statistical leaders:...
, as the AA began to crumble. The Cleveland ball club, named the Spiders
Cleveland Spiders
The Cleveland Spiders were a Major League Baseball team which played between 1887 and 1899 in Cleveland, Ohio. The team played at National League Park from 1889 to 1890 and at League Park from 1891 to 1899.- 1887-1891 :...
(supposedly inspired by their "skinny and spindly" players) slowly became a power in the league. The next year the Spiders moved into League Park
League Park
League Park was a baseball park located in Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It was situated at the northeast corner of Lexington Avenue and E. 66th Street in the Hough neighborhood. It was home to the National League Cleveland Spiders, the American League Cleveland Indians, and the Cleveland...
, which would serve as the home of Cleveland professional baseball for the next 55 years. Led by native Ohioan Cy Young
Cy Young
Denton True "Cy" Young was an American Major League Baseball pitcher. During his 22-year baseball career , he pitched for five different teams. Young was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1937...
, the Spiders became a contender in the mid-1890s, when they played in the Temple Cup
Temple Cup
The Temple Cup was a trophy awarded to the winner of a best-of-seven, post-season championship series in the National League, from 1894–1897. The 30-inch-high silver cup was donated by coal, citrus, and lumber baron William Chase Temple, the owner of the Pittsburgh Pirates at the time...
Series (that era's World Series) twice, winning it in 1895
1895 in baseball
-Champions:* Temple Cup: Cleveland Spiders defeated Baltimore Orioles, 4 games to 1* National League: Baltimore Orioles-Statistical leaders:*Batting: Jesse Burkett .409*Home Runs: Sam Thompson 18*Wins: Cy Young 35*ERA: Al Maul 2.45...
. The team began to fade after this success, and was dealt a severe blow under the ownership of the Robison brothers
Robison Field
Robison Field is the best-known of several names given to a former Major League Baseball park in St. Louis, Missouri. It was the home of the St. Louis Cardinals of the National League from April 27, 1893 until June 6, 1920.-History:...
.
Prior to the season, Frank Robison, the Spiders owner, bought the St. Louis Browns
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are a professional baseball team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division in the National League of Major League Baseball. The Cardinals have won eleven World Series championships, the most of any National League team, and second overall only to...
, thus owning two clubs at the same time. The Browns were renamed the "Perfectos," and restocked with Cleveland talent. Just weeks before the season opener, most of the better Spiders players were transferred to St. Louis, including three future Hall of Famers: Cy Young, Jesse Burkett
Jesse Burkett
Jesse Cail Burkett , nicknamed "The Crab", was a Major League Baseball player at the turn of the 20th century...
and Bobby Wallace
Bobby Wallace (baseball)
Rhoderick John "Bobby" Wallace was a Major League Baseball pitcher, infielder, manager, umpire and scout....
. The roster maneuvers failed to create a powerhouse Perfectos team, as St. Louis finished fifth in both 1899 and . The Spiders were left with essentially a minor league lineup, and began to lose games at a record pace. Drawing almost no fans at home, they ended up playing most of their season on the road, and became known as "The Wanderers." The team ended the season in 12th place, 84 games out of first place, with an all-time worst record of 20 wins and 134 losses. Following the 1899 season, the National League disbanded four teams, including the Cleveland franchise. The disastrous 1899 season would actually be a step toward a new future for Cleveland fans the next year.
1900, Cleveland Infants — nickname "Babes"
The Cleveland Infants was in the Players' League. The League was well-attended, at least in some cities, but was underfunded and its owners lacked the confidence to continue beyond the one season. There were eight teams who were star-studded; the Boston franchise won the championship. The Cleveland Infants finished with 55 wins and 75 losses. Their home games were played at Brotherhood Park
Brotherhood Park
Brotherhood Park is a former baseball ground located in Cleveland, Ohio. The ground was home to the Cleveland Infants of the Players League in 1890.-References:...
.
1894–1935: Beginning to middle
The Grand Rapids Rustlers was founded in Michigan in 1894 and were in the Western League. In 1900 the team moved to Cleveland and was named The Cleveland Lake Shores. Around the same time Ban Johnson changed the name of his minor league (Western League) to the American League. In 1900 the American League was still considered a minor league. In 1901 Cleveland renamed itself the "Bluebirds" when the American League broke with the National Agreement and declared itself a competing Major League. The Cleveland franchise was among its eight charter members.Charles Somers
Charles Somers aka Charles W. Somers, was an American executive in Cleveland, Ohio's coal industry who also achieved prominence in Major League Baseball...
and tailor Jack Kilfoyl. Somers, a wealthy industrialist and also co-owner of the Boston Americans
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
, lent money to other team owners, including Connie Mack
Connie Mack (baseball)
Cornelius McGillicuddy, Sr. , better known as Connie Mack, was an American professional baseball player, manager, and team owner. The longest-serving manager in Major League Baseball history, he holds records for wins , losses , and games managed , with his victory total being almost 1,000 more...
's Philadelphia Athletics
Oakland Athletics
The Oakland Athletics are a Major League Baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. From to the present, the Athletics have played in the O.co Coliseum....
, to keep them and the new league afloat. Players didn't think the name "Bluebirds" was suitable for a baseball team. Writers frequently shortened it to "Blues" ③ due to the players' all-blue uniforms, but the players didn't like this name either. The players themselves tried to change the name to "Broncos" in , but it never really caught on.
The Bluebirds suffered from financial problems in their first two seasons. This led Somers to seriously consider moving to either Pittsburgh or Cincinnati. Relief came in 1902 as a result of the conflict between the National and American Leagues. In 1901, Napoleon "Nap" Lajoie
Nap Lajoie
Napoléon "Nap" Lajoie , also known as Larry Lajoie, was an American Major League Baseball second baseman. He was born in Woonsocket, Rhode Island...
, the Philadelphia Phillies
Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
' star second baseman
Second baseman
Second base, or 2B, is the second of four stations on a baseball diamond which must be touched in succession by a base runner in order to score a run for that player's team. A second baseman is the baseball player guarding second base...
, jumped to the A's after his contract was capped at $2,400 per year—one of the highest-profile players to jump to the upstart AL. The Phillies subsequently filed an injunction to force Lajoie's return, which was granted by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. The injunction appeared to doom any hopes of an early settlement between the warring leagues. However, a lawyer discovered that the injunction was only enforceable in the state of Pennsylvania. Mack, partly to thank Somers for his past financial support, agreed to trade Lajoie to the then-moribund Blues, who offered $25,000 salary over three years. Due to the injunction, however, Lajoie had to sit out any games played against the A's in Philadelphia. Lajoie arrived in Cleveland on June 4 and was an immediate hit, drawing 10,000 fans to League Park. Soon afterward, he was named team captain, and the team was renamed the "Naps" after a newspaper conducted a write-in contest.
Lajoie was named manager in , and the team's fortunes improved somewhat. They finished half a game short of the pennant in 1908. However, the success did not last and Lajoie resigned during the 1909 season as manager but remained on as a player.
Cy Young
Denton True "Cy" Young was an American Major League Baseball pitcher. During his 22-year baseball career , he pitched for five different teams. Young was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1937...
, who returned to Cleveland in 1909, was ineffective for most of his three remaining years and Addie Joss
Addie Joss
Adrian Joss was a Major League Baseball pitcher. He pitched his entire nine-year baseball career for the Cleveland Bronchos/Naps .-Early life:...
died from tubercular meningitis prior to the season.
Despite a strong lineup anchored by the potent Lajoie and Shoeless Joe Jackson
Shoeless Joe Jackson
Joseph Jefferson Jackson , nicknamed "Shoeless Joe", was an American baseball player who played Major League Baseball in the early part of the 20th century...
, poor pitching kept the team below third place for most of the next decade. One reporter referred to the team as the Napkins, "because they fold up so easily". In 1912 the teams name was changed to "Cleveland Molly McGuires" after the coal miners who where trying to establish a union and were regarded as "heroes". The name lasted only three years. The team hit bottom in 1914 and 1915, finishing in the cellar both years.
1915 brought significant changes to the team. Lajoie, nearly 40 years old was no longer a top hitter in the league, batting only .258 in 1914. With Lajoie engaged in a feud with manager Joe Birmingham
Joe Birmingham
Joseph Leo Birmingham was a baseball player. Birmingham was an outfielder who occasionally played the infield for the Cleveland Naps. He was a mediocre hitter, but he had one of the strongest throwing arms and he was a fine defensive center fielder...
, the team sold Lajoie back to the A's.
With Lajoie gone, the Molly McGuires now needed a new nickname. Somers asked the local newspapers to come up with a new name, and they chose "Indians". Legend has it that the team honored Louis Sockalexis
Louis Sockalexis
Louis Francis "Chief" Sockalexis , nicknamed The Deerfoot of the Diamond, was an American baseball player...
when it assumed its current name in 1915. Sockalexis, a Native American
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
, had played in Cleveland 1897–99. Research indicates that this legend is mostly untrue, and that the new name was a play on the name of the Boston Braves
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves are a professional baseball club based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Braves have played in Turner Field since 1997....
, then known as the "Miracle Braves" after going from last place on July 4 to a sweep in the 1914 World Series
1914 World Series
In the 1914 World Series, the Boston Braves beat the Philadelphia Athletics in a four-game sweep.A contender for greatest upset of all time, the "Miracle Braves" were in last place on July 4, then roared on to win the National League pennant by games and sweep the stunned Athletics...
. Proponents of the name acknowledged that the Cleveland Spiders
Cleveland Spiders
The Cleveland Spiders were a Major League Baseball team which played between 1887 and 1899 in Cleveland, Ohio. The team played at National League Park from 1889 to 1890 and at League Park from 1891 to 1899.- 1887-1891 :...
of the National League
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional...
had sometimes been informally called the "Indians" during Sockalexis' short career there, a fact which merely reinforced the new name.
At the same time, Somers' business ventures began to fail, leaving him deeply in debt. With the Indians playing poorly, attendance and revenue suffered. Somers decided to trade Jackson midway through the 1915 season for two players and $31,500, one of the largest sums paid for a player at the time.
By , Somers was at the end of his tether, and sold the team to a syndicate headed by Chicago railroad contractor James C. "Jack" Dunn. Manager Lee Fohl, who had taken over in early 1915, acquired two minor league pitchers, Stan Coveleski
Stan Coveleski
Stanley Anthony Coveleski was a Major League Baseball player during the 1910s and 1920s. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1969....
and Jim Bagby
Jim Bagby, Sr.
James Charles Jacob Bagby, Sr. was an American right-handed starting pitcher in Major League Baseball. Bagby was the first pitcher to hit a home run in a modern World Series, and one of the last three pitchers to win over 30 games in one season .-Biography:A native of Barnett, Georgia, Bagby began...
and traded for center fielder Tris Speaker
Tris Speaker
Tristram E. Speaker , nicknamed "Spoke" and "The Grey Eagle", was an American baseball player. Considered one of the best offensive and defensive center fielders in the history of Major League Baseball, he compiled a career batting average of .345 , and still holds the record of 792 career doubles...
, who was engaged in a salary dispute with the Red Sox
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
. All three would ultimately become key players in bringing a championship to Cleveland.
Speaker took over the reins as player-manager in , and would lead the team to a championship in 1920. On August 16, the Indians were playing the Yankees at the Polo Grounds
Polo Grounds
The Polo Grounds was the name given to four different stadiums in Upper Manhattan, New York City, used by many professional teams in both baseball and American football from 1880 until 1963...
in New York. Shortstop Ray Chapman
Ray Chapman
Raymond Johnson Chapman was an American baseball player, spending his entire career as a shortstop for Cleveland....
, who often crowded the plate, was batting against Carl Mays
Carl Mays
Carl William Mays was a right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball from 1915 to 1929. Despite impressive career statistics, he is primarily remembered for throwing a beanball on August 16, 1920, that struck and killed Ray Chapman of the Cleveland Indians, making Chapman one of two people to die...
, who had an unusual underhand delivery. It was also late in the afternoon and the infield would have been in shadow with the center field area (the batters' background) bathed in sunlight. As well, at the time, "part of every pitcher's job was to dirty up a new ball the moment it was thrown onto the field. By turns, they smeared it with dirt, licorice, tobacco juice; it was deliberately scuffed, sandpapered, scarred, cut, even spiked. The result was a misshapen, earth-colored ball that traveled through the air erratically, tended to soften in the later innings, and as it came over the plate, was very hard to see."
In any case, Chapman did not move reflexively when Mays' pitch came his way. The pitch hit Chapman in the head, fracturing his skull. Chapman died the next day, becoming the only player to sustain a fatal injury from a pitched ball. The Indians, who at the time were locked in a tight three-way pennant race with the Yankees and White Sox, were not slowed down by the death of their teammate. Rookie Joe Sewell
Joe Sewell
Joseph Wheeler Sewell was a Major League Baseball infielder for the Cleveland Indians and New York Yankees...
hit .329 after replacing Chapman in the lineup.
In September 1920, the Black Sox Scandal
Black Sox Scandal
The Black Sox Scandal took place around and during the play of the American baseball 1919 World Series. Eight members of the Chicago White Sox were banned for life from baseball for intentionally losing games, which allowed the Cincinnati Reds to win the World Series...
came to a boil. With just a few games left in the season, and Cleveland and Chicago neck-and-neck for first place at 94–54 and 95–56 respectively, the Chicago owner suspended eight players. The White Sox lost 2 of 3 in their final series, while Cleveland won 4 and lost 2 in their final two series. Cleveland finished 2 games ahead of Chicago and 3 games ahead of the Yankees to win its first pennant, led by Speaker's .388 hitting
Batting average
Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...
, Jim Bagby's 30 victories
Win (baseball)
In professional baseball, there are two types of decisions: a win and a loss . In each game, one pitcher on the winning team is awarded a win and one pitcher on the losing team is given a loss in their respective statistics. These pitchers are collectively known as the pitchers of record. Only...
and solid performances from Steve O'Neill
Steve O'Neill
Stephen Francis O'Neill was an American catcher, manager, coach and scout in Major League Baseball.Born to Irish immigrants in Minooka, Pennsylvania , O'Neill was one of six brothers who escaped a life in the coal mines by playing in the major leagues...
and Stan Coveleski. Cleveland went on to defeat the Brooklyn Robins 5–2 in the World Series
1920 World Series
-Game 1:Tuesday, October 5, 1920 at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn, New York-Game 2:Wednesday, October 6, 1920 at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn, New York-Game 3:Thursday, October 7, 1920 at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn, New York-Game 4:...
for their first title, winning four games in a row after the Robins took a 2–1 Series lead. The Series included three memorable "firsts", all of them in Game 5 at Cleveland, and all by the home team. In the first inning, right fielder Elmer Smith hit the first Series grand slam. In the fourth inning, Jim Bagby
Jim Bagby, Sr.
James Charles Jacob Bagby, Sr. was an American right-handed starting pitcher in Major League Baseball. Bagby was the first pitcher to hit a home run in a modern World Series, and one of the last three pitchers to win over 30 games in one season .-Biography:A native of Barnett, Georgia, Bagby began...
hit the first Series home run by a pitcher. And in the top of the fifth inning, second baseman Bill Wambsganss
Bill Wambsganss
William Adolf Wambsganss was a second baseman in Major League Baseball. From 1914 through 1926, Wambsganss played for the Cleveland Indians, Boston Red Sox, and Philadelphia Athletics...
executed the first (and only, so far) unassisted triple play in World Series history, in fact the only Series triple play of any kind.
The team would not reach the heights of 1920 again for 28 years. Speaker and Coveleski were aging and the Yankees were rising with a new weapon: Babe Ruth
Babe Ruth
George Herman Ruth, Jr. , best known as "Babe" Ruth and nicknamed "the Bambino" and "the Sultan of Swat", was an American Major League baseball player from 1914–1935...
and the home run
Home run
In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to reach home safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team in the process...
. They managed two second-place finishes but spent much of the decade in the cellar. In 1927 Dunn's widow, Mrs. George Pross (Dunn had died in 1922), sold the team to a syndicate headed by Alva Bradley
Alva Bradley
Alva Bradley , aka Alva Bradley II, was a businessman and baseball team executive.Bradley was born to a wealthy family in Cleveland, Ohio, the son of M.A. Bradley and grandson of his namesake, Captain Alva Bradley. He graduated Cornell in 1908...
.
Bob Feller enters the show: 1936-1946
The Indians were a middling team by the 1930s, finishing third or fourth most years. brought Cleveland a new superstar in 17-year old pitcher Bob FellerBob Feller
On December 8, 1941, Feller enlisted in the Navy, volunteering immediately for combat service, becoming the first Major League Baseball player to do so following the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7. Feller served as Gun Captain aboard the USS Alabama, and missed four seasons during his service...
, who came from Iowa
Iowa
Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...
with a dominating fastball
Fastball
The fastball is the most common type of pitch in baseball. Some "power pitchers," such as Nolan Ryan and Roger Clemens, have thrown it at speeds of 95–106 mph and up to 108.1 mph , relying purely on speed to prevent the ball from being hit...
. That season, Feller set a record with 17 strikeouts in a single game and went on to lead the league in strikeouts from 1938–1941. According to Fundamentals of Physics
Fundamentals of Physics
Fundamentals of Physics is a calculus-based physics textbook by David Halliday, Robert Resnick, and Jearl Walker. The textbook is currently in its ninth edition and is published in a five-volume set. The current version is a revised version of the original textbook Physics by Halliday and Resnick,...
( 4 ed., Wiley
Wiley
Wiley may refer to:* Wiley, Colorado, a U.S. town* Wiley-Kaserne, a district of the city of Neu-Ulm, Germany* Wiley College, a college in Texas founded by Isaac Wiley* Wiley Rein LLP, a U.S. Law Firm...
, 1993 ), by David Halliday, Robert Resnick
Robert Resnick
Robert Resnick is a well-respected physics educator and author of physics textbooks.He was born in Baltimore, Maryland on January 11, 1923 and graduated from the Baltimore City College high school in 1939. He received his B.A. in 1943 and his Ph.D. in 1949, both in physics from Johns Hopkins...
and Jearl Walker
Jearl Walker
Jearl Walker is a physicist noted for his book Flying Circus of Physics, first published in 1975; the second edition was published in June 2006...
, on page 30, Chapter Two, " Motion along a Straight Line ", Joe Sprinz
Joe Sprinz
Joseph Conrad Sprinz was a Major League Baseball catcher who played for three seasons. He played for the Cleveland Indians from 1930 to 1931 and the St...
, at the time in question, a member of the San Francisco Ball Club, and formerly of the Indians, attempted to beat the World Record
World record
A world record is usually the best global performance ever recorded and verified in a specific skill or sport. The book Guinness World Records collates and publishes notable records of all types, from first and best to worst human achievements, to extremes in the natural world and beyond...
for catching a baseball dropped from a great height, set by members of the 1938 Cleveland Indians, who had done so at 700 feet, with balls dropped from a building. On a day in 1939, Sprinz had a blimp hover overhead at 800 feet, from which were to be dropped balls for him to catch. On his fifth attempt, a baseball entered his glove at what could be estimated to be up to 154 mph. It slammed his glove hand into his face with such force, that he broke his upper jaw in twelve places, fractured five of his teeth, and was rendered unconscious. He also dropped the ball. By , Feller, along with Ken Keltner
Ken Keltner
Kenneth Frederick Keltner was an American professional baseball player. He played almost his entire Major League Baseball career as a third baseman with the Cleveland Indians, until his final season when he played 13 games for the Boston Red Sox. He batted and threw right-handed...
, Mel Harder
Mel Harder
Melvin Leroy Harder , nicknamed "Chief", was an American, right-handed, starting pitcher and coach in Major League Baseball, who played his entire career with the Cleveland Indians. He spent 36 seasons overall with the Indians, as a player from 1928 to 1947 and as one of the game's most highly...
and Lou Boudreau
Lou Boudreau
Louis "Lou" Boudreau was an American Major League Baseball player and manager. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1970...
led the Indians to within one game of the pennant. However, the team was wracked with dissension, with some players (including Feller and Mel Harder
Mel Harder
Melvin Leroy Harder , nicknamed "Chief", was an American, right-handed, starting pitcher and coach in Major League Baseball, who played his entire career with the Cleveland Indians. He spent 36 seasons overall with the Indians, as a player from 1928 to 1947 and as one of the game's most highly...
) going so far as to request that Bradley fire manager Ossie Vitt
Ossie Vitt
Oscar Joseph "Ossie" Vitt , was a Major League Baseball third baseman in the American League for the Detroit Tigers and Boston Red Sox . Vitt later became manager of the Cleveland Indians , where he sometimes clashed with his players.-Playing career:Ossie Vitt was a product of the sandlots of...
. Reporters lampooned them as the Cleveland Crybabies. Feller, who had pitched a no-hitter
No-hitter
A no-hitter is a baseball game in which one team has no hits. In Major League Baseball, the team must be without hits during the entire game, and the game must be at least nine innings. A pitcher who prevents the opposing team from achieving a hit is said to have "thrown a no-hitter"...
to open the season and won 27 games, lost the final game of the season to unknown pitcher Floyd Giebell of the Detroit Tigers
Detroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers are a Major League Baseball team located in Detroit, Michigan. One of the American League's eight charter franchises, the club was founded in Detroit in as part of the Western League. The Tigers have won four World Series championships and have won the American League pennant...
. The Tigers won the pennant and Giebell never won another major league game.
Cleveland entered 1941 with a young team and a new manager; Roger Peckinpaugh
Roger Peckinpaugh
Roger Thorpe Peckinpaugh was an American shortstop in Major League Baseball for the Cleveland Indians , New York Yankees , Washington Senators and Chicago White Sox...
had replaced the despised Vitt; but the team regressed, finishing in fourth. Cleveland would soon be depleted of two stars. Hal Trosky
Hal Trosky
Harold Arthur Trosky, Sr., born Harold Arthur Trojovsky , was an American first baseman in Major League Baseball for the Cleveland Indians and the Chicago White Sox . Trosky was born in Norway, Iowa. He batted left-handed and threw right-handed.Trosky had a career .302 batting average, with a...
retired in 1941 due to migraine headaches and Bob Feller enlisted in the Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
two days after the Attack on Pearl Harbor
Attack on Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on the morning of December 7, 1941...
. Starting third baseman Ken Keltner
Ken Keltner
Kenneth Frederick Keltner was an American professional baseball player. He played almost his entire Major League Baseball career as a third baseman with the Cleveland Indians, until his final season when he played 13 games for the Boston Red Sox. He batted and threw right-handed...
and outfielder Ray Mack
Ray Mack
Raymond James Mack was a second baseman in Major League Baseball from 1938 to 1946 with the Cleveland Indians and in 1947 with the New York Yankees and the Chicago Cubs...
were both drafted in 1945 taking two more starters out of the lineup.
1947–1959
In Bill VeeckBill Veeck
William Louis Veeck, Jr. , also known as "Sport Shirt Bill", was a native of Chicago, Illinois, and a franchise owner and promoter in Major League Baseball. He was best known for his publicity stunts to raise attendance. Veeck was at various times the owner of the Cleveland Indians, St. Louis...
formed an investment group that purchased the Cleveland Indians from Bradley's group for a reported $1.6 million. Among the investors was Bob Hope
Bob Hope
Bob Hope, KBE, KCSG, KSS was a British-born American comedian and actor who appeared in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in radio, television and movies. He was also noted for his work with the US Armed Forces and his numerous USO shows entertaining American military personnel...
, who had grown up in Cleveland, and former Tigers slugger, Hank Greenberg
Hank Greenberg
Henry Benjamin "Hank" Greenberg , nicknamed "Hammerin' Hank" or "The Hebrew Hammer," was an American professional baseball player in the 1930s and 1940s. A first baseman primarily for the Detroit Tigers, Greenberg was one of the premier power hitters of his generation...
.
A former owner of a minor league franchise in Milwaukee, Veeck brought to Cleveland a gift for promotion. At one point, Veeck hired rubber-faced Max Patkin
Max Patkin
Max Patkin was an American baseball player and clown, best known as the Clown Prince of Baseball ....
, the "Clown Prince of Baseball" as a coach. Patkin's appearance in the coaching box was the sort of promotional stunt that delighted fans but infuriated the American League front office.
Recognizing that he had acquired a solid team, Veeck soon abandoned the aging, small and lightless League Park to take up full-time residence in massive Cleveland Municipal Stadium. Prior to 1947 the Indians played most of their games at League Park, and occasionally played weekend games at Cleveland Municipal Stadium. League Park was demolished in 1951, although a portion of the original ticket booth remains.
1948 World Series
The 1948 World Series matched the Cleveland Indians against the Boston Braves. The Braves had won the National League pennant for the first time since the "Miracle Braves" team of . The Indians spoiled a chance for the only all-Boston World Series by winning a one-game playoff against the Boston...
against the Boston Braves drew over 84,000. The record stood until the Los Angeles Dodgers
Los Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are a professional baseball team based in Los Angeles, California. The Dodgers are members of Major League Baseball's National League West Division. Established in 1883, the team originated in Brooklyn, New York, where it was known by a number of nicknames before becoming...
drew a crowd in excess of 92,500 to watch Game 5 of the 1959 World Series
1959 World Series
The 1959 World Series featured the National League champion Los Angeles Dodgers beating the American League champion Chicago White Sox, four games to two. It was the first pennant for the White Sox in 40 years . They would have to wait until 2005 to win another championship...
at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum is a large outdoor sports stadium in the University Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, at Exposition Park, that is home to the Pacific-12 Conference's University of Southern California Trojans football team...
against the Chicago White Sox
Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are a Major League Baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois.The White Sox play in the American League's Central Division. Since , the White Sox have played in U.S. Cellular Field, which was originally called New Comiskey Park and nicknamed The Cell by local fans...
.
Under Veeck's leadership, one of Cleveland's most significant achievements was breaking the color barrier
Baseball color line
The color line in American baseball excluded players of black African descent from Organized Baseball, or the major leagues and affiliated minor leagues, until Jackie Robinson signed with the Brooklyn Dodgers organization for the 1946 season...
in the American League
American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the American League , is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league based in the Great Lakes states, which eventually aspired to major...
by signing Larry Doby
Larry Doby
Lawrence Eugene "Larry" Doby was an American professional baseball player in the Negro leagues and Major League Baseball....
, formerly a player for the Negro League's Newark Eagles
Newark Eagles
The Newark Eagles was a professional Negro league baseball team that played in the second Negro National League from 1936 to 1948.- Formation :...
in , eleven weeks after Jackie Robinson
Jackie Robinson
Jack Roosevelt "Jackie" Robinson was the first black Major League Baseball player of the modern era. Robinson broke the baseball color line when he debuted with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947...
signed with the Dodgers. Similar to Robinson, Doby battled racism on and off the field but posted a .301 batting average in 1948, his first full season. A power-hitting center fielder, Doby led the American League twice in homers.
In 1948, needing pitching for the stretch run of the pennant race, Veeck turned to the Negro League again and signed pitching great Satchel Paige
Satchel Paige
Leroy Robert "Satchel" Paige was an American baseball player whose pitching in the Negro leagues and in Major League Baseball made him a legend in his own lifetime...
amid much controversy. Barred from Major League Baseball during his prime, Veeck's signing of the aging star in 1948 was viewed by many as another publicity stunt. At an official age of 42, Paige became the oldest rookie in Major League baseball history, and the first black pitcher. Paige soon proved he could still pitch and ended the year with a 6–1 record with a 2.48 ERA, 45 strikeouts and two shutouts.
In , veterans Boudreau, Keltner, and Joe Gordon had career offensive seasons, while newcomers Larry Doby
Larry Doby
Lawrence Eugene "Larry" Doby was an American professional baseball player in the Negro leagues and Major League Baseball....
and Gene Bearden
Gene Bearden
Henry Eugene "Gene" Bearden was a left-handed knuckleball pitcher in Major League Baseball who completed a remarkable rookie season by closing out the Cleveland Indians' last World Series championship in 1948....
also had standout seasons. The team went down to the wire with the Boston Red Sox
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
, winning a one-game playoff, the first in American League history, to go to the World Series. In the series, the Indians defeated the Boston Braves four games to two for their first championship in 28 years. Boudreau won the American League MVP Award.
The Indians would appear in a film the following year
1949 in film
The year 1949 in film involved some significant events.-Top grossing films :- Awards :Academy Awards:*Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff, starring Bud Abbott and Lou Costello...
titled The Kid From Cleveland
The Kid from Cleveland
The Kid from Cleveland is a 1949 sports drama film starring George Brent, Lynn Bari and Russ Tamblyn. Directed by Herbert Kline, the film was released by Republic Pictures.-Plot:...
, in which Veeck had an interest. The film portrayed the team helping out a "troubled teenaged fan" and featured many members of the Indians organization. However, filming during the season cost the players valuable rest days leading to fatigue towards the end of the season. That season, Cleveland again contended before falling to third place. On September 23, 1949, Bill Veeck and the Indians buried their 1948 pennant in center field the day after they were mathematically eliminated from the pennant race.
Later in 1949, Veeck's first wife (who had a half-stake in Veeck's share of the team) divorced him. With most of his money tied up in the Indians, Veeck was forced to sell the team to a syndicate headed by insurance magnate Ellis Ryan. Ryan was forced out in in favor of Myron Wilson, who in turn gave way to William Daley in . Despite this turnover in the ownership, a powerhouse team composed of Feller, Doby, Minnie Miñoso, Luke Easter, Bobby Avila
Bobby Avila
Roberto Francisco Ávila González to Maria Gonzalez and Jorge Avila, was a Major League Baseball second baseman and right-handed batter who played for the Cleveland Indians , Baltimore Orioles , Boston Red Sox , Milwaukee Braves and Tigres del México...
, Al Rosen
Al Rosen
Albert Leonard Rosen , nicknamed "Al", "Flip", and the "Hebrew Hammer", is a former American professional baseball player who was a third baseman and right-handed slugger in the Major Leagues for ten seasons in tthe 1940s and 1950s.He played his entire 10-year career with the Cleveland Indians in...
, Early Wynn
Early Wynn
Early Wynn Jr. , nicknamed "Gus", was a Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. During a 25-year baseball career, he pitched for the Washington Senators, Cleveland Indians and Chicago White Sox...
, Bob Lemon
Bob Lemon
Robert Granville Lemon was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1976....
, and Mike Garcia continued to contend through the early 1950s. However, Cleveland only won a single pennant in the decade, finishing second to the New York Yankees
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...
five times.
The best season in franchise history came in , when the Indians finished the season with a record of 111-43 (.721). That mark set an American League record for wins which stood for 44 years until the New York Yankees
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...
won 114 games in 1998. The Indians 1954 winning percentage of .721 is still an American League record. The Indians returned to the World Series
1954 World Series
The 1954 World Series matched the National League champion New York Giants against the American League champion Cleveland Indians. The Giants swept the Series in four games to win their first championship since , defeating the heavily favored Indians, who had won an AL-record 111 games in the...
to face the New York Giants
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the National League West Division....
. The team could not bring home the title, however, ultimately being upset by the Giants in a sweep. The series was notable for Willie Mays
Willie Mays
Willie Howard Mays, Jr. is a retired American professional baseball player who played the majority of his major league career with the New York and San Francisco Giants before finishing with the New York Mets. Nicknamed The Say Hey Kid, Mays was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1979, his...
' famous over-the-shoulder catch off the bat of Vic Wertz
Vic Wertz
Victor Woodrow Wertz was a Major League Baseball first baseman and outfielder. He had a seventeen year career from 1947 to 1963. He was signed as a free agent by the Detroit Tigers in 1942 and played for the Tigers, St...
in Game 1.
1960–1993: The 30-year slump
From 1960 to 1993, the Indians managed one third-place finish (in 1968) and six fourth-place finishes (in 1960, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1990, and 1992) but spent the rest of the time at or near the bottom of the standings.Frank Lane becomes general manager
The Indians hired general manager Frank LaneFrank Lane
Frank Lane was an American executive in professional baseball, most notably serving as a general manager in Major League Baseball for the Chicago White Sox, St...
, known as "Trader" Lane, away from the St. Louis Cardinals
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are a professional baseball team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division in the National League of Major League Baseball. The Cardinals have won eleven World Series championships, the most of any National League team, and second overall only to...
in 1957. Lane over the years had gained a reputation as a GM who loved to make deals. With the White Sox, Lane had made over 100 trades involving over 400 players in seven years. In a short stint in St. Louis, he traded away Red Schoendienst
Red Schoendienst
Albert Fred "Red" Schoendienst is an American Major League Baseball coach, former player and manager, and 10-time All-star. After a 19-year playing career with the St...
and Harvey Haddix
Harvey Haddix
Harvey Haddix, Jr. was a Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher who played with the St. Louis Cardinals , Philadelphia Phillies , Cincinnati Redlegs , Pittsburgh Pirates and Baltimore Orioles . Haddix was born in Medway, Ohio, located just outside of Springfield...
. Lane summed up his philosophy when he said that the only deals he regretted were the ones that he didn't make.
One of Lane's early trades in Cleveland was to send Roger Maris
Roger Maris
Roger Eugene Maris was an American Major League Baseball right fielder. During the 1961 season, he hit a record 61 home runs for the New York Yankees, breaking Babe Ruth's single-season record of 60 home runs...
to the Kansas City Athletics
Oakland Athletics
The Oakland Athletics are a Major League Baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. From to the present, the Athletics have played in the O.co Coliseum....
in the middle of 1958. Indians executive Hank Greenberg
Hank Greenberg
Henry Benjamin "Hank" Greenberg , nicknamed "Hammerin' Hank" or "The Hebrew Hammer," was an American professional baseball player in the 1930s and 1940s. A first baseman primarily for the Detroit Tigers, Greenberg was one of the premier power hitters of his generation...
was not happy about the trade and neither was Maris, who said that he could not stand Lane. After Maris broke Babe Ruth's home run record, Lane defended himself by saying he still would have done the deal because Maris was unknown and he received good ballplayers in exchange.
After the Maris trade, Lane acquired 25-year old Norm Cash
Norm Cash
Norman Dalton Cash was an American first baseman in Major League Baseball who spent almost his entire career with the Detroit Tigers...
from the White Sox for Minnie Miñoso and then traded him to Detroit before he ever played a game for the Indians; Cash went on to hit over 350 home runs for the Tigers. The Indians received Steve Demeter
Steve Demeter
Stephen Demeter is a former United States Major League Baseball third baseman who played for two seasons. He played for the Detroit Tigers in 1959 and the Cleveland Indians in 1960 and was a fixture of the Rochester Red Wings teams of the mid-1960s, hitting 272 minor league home runs.-External...
in the deal, who would have only five at-bats for Cleveland.
Curse of Rocky Colavito
In 1960, Lane made the trade that would define his tenure in Cleveland when he dealt slugging right fielder and fan favorite Rocky ColavitoRocky Colavito
Rocco Domenico "Rocky" Colavito, Jr. is a former right fielder in Major League Baseball best known for his years with the Cleveland Indians. He wore a #6, #7 or #21 jersey during his MLB career...
to the Detroit Tigers
Detroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers are a Major League Baseball team located in Detroit, Michigan. One of the American League's eight charter franchises, the club was founded in Detroit in as part of the Western League. The Tigers have won four World Series championships and have won the American League pennant...
for Harvey Kuenn
Harvey Kuenn
Harvey Edward Kuenn was an American player, coach and manager in Major League Baseball. As a shortstop and outfielder, he played with the Detroit Tigers , Cleveland Indians , San Francisco Giants , Chicago Cubs and Philadelphia Phillies . He batted and threw right-handed...
just before Opening Day
Opening Day
Opening Day is the day on which professional baseball leagues begin their regular season. For Major League Baseball and most of the minor leagues, this day falls during the first week of April. For baseball fans, Opening Day serves as a symbol of rebirth; writer Thomas Boswell once penned a book...
in .
It was a blockbuster trade that swapped the AL home run co-champion (Colavito) for the AL batting champion (Kuenn). After the trade, however, Colavito hit over 30 home runs four times and made three All-Star teams for Detroit and Kansas City before returning to Cleveland in . Kuenn, on the other hand, would play only one season for the Indians before departing for San Francisco
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the National League West Division....
in a trade for an aging Johnny Antonelli
Johnny Antonelli
John August Antonelli is an American former left-handed starting pitcher who played for the Boston and Milwaukee Braves, New York and San Francisco Giants, and Cleveland Indians....
and Willie Kirkland
Willie Kirkland
Willie Charles Kirkland is a former right fielder in Major League Baseball who played for the San Francisco Giants , Cleveland Indians , Baltimore Orioles and Washington Senators...
. Akron Beacon Journal
Akron Beacon Journal
The Akron Beacon Journal is a four-time Pulitzer Prize-winning morning newspaper in Akron, Ohio, United States, and published by Black Press Ltd.. It is the sole daily newspaper in Akron and is distributed throughout Northeast Ohio. The paper places a strong emphasis on local news and business...
columnist Terry Pluto
Terry Pluto
Terry Pluto is an award-winning sportswriter who primarily writes columns for The Plain Dealer, and formerly for the Akron Beacon Journal about Cleveland sports and religion. He has been named Ohio Sportswriter of the Year eight times...
documented the decades of woe that followed the trade in his book The Curse of Rocky Colavito. Despite being attached to the curse, Colavito said that he never placed a curse on the Indians but that the trade was prompted by a salary dispute with Lane.
Lane also engineered a unique trade of managers in mid-season 1960, sending Joe Gordon to the Tigers in exchange for Jimmy Dykes
Jimmy Dykes
James Joseph Dykes was an American third and second baseman, manager and coach in Major League Baseball who played for the Philadelphia Athletics and Chicago White Sox from 1918 to 1939...
. Lane left the team in 1961, but ill-advised trades continued. In 1965, the Indians traded pitcher Tommy John
Tommy John
Thomas Edward John Jr. is a former left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball whose 288 career victories rank as the seventh highest total among left-handers in major league history...
, who would go on to win 288 games in his career, and 1966 Rookie of the Year Tommy Agee to the White Sox to get Colavito back.
1969 Move to the East Division
The 1970s were not much better, with the Indians trading away several future stars, including Graig NettlesGraig Nettles
Graig Nettles , nicknamed "Puff", is a former Major League Baseball third baseman. During a 22-year baseball career, he played for the Minnesota Twins , Cleveland Indians , New York Yankees , San Diego Padres , Atlanta Braves and Montreal Expos .Nettles was one of the best...
, Dennis Eckersley
Dennis Eckersley
Dennis Lee Eckersley , nicknamed "Eck", is a former American Major League Baseball pitcher. Eckersley had success as a starter, but gained his greatest fame as a closer, becoming the first of only two pitchers in Major League history to have both a 20-win season and a 50-save season in a career .He...
, Buddy Bell
Buddy Bell
David Gus "Buddy" Bell is a former third baseman and manager in Major League Baseball. After an 18-year career with four teams, most notably the Cleveland Indians and Texas Rangers, he managed the Detroit Tigers, Colorado Rockies and Kansas City Royals for three seasons each...
and 1971 Rookie of the Year Chris Chambliss
Chris Chambliss
Carroll Christopher Chambliss is a former Major League Baseball player who played from to for the Cleveland Indians, New York Yankees and Atlanta Braves...
, for a number of players who made no impact.
Constant ownership changes did not help the Indians. In 1963, Daley's syndicate sold the team to a group headed by general manager Gabe Paul
Gabe Paul
Gabriel Howard Paul was an American executive in Major League Baseball who served as general manager of three teams and, perhaps most famously, as president of the New York Yankees under George Steinbrenner during the 1970s....
. Three years later, Paul sold the Indians to Vernon Stouffer
Vernon Stouffer
Vernon B. Stouffer, owned a national chain of restaurants, motor inns, and food-service operations and the Cleveland Indians from 1966-72. He played a key part in developing frozen foods and microwavable foods. His company Stouffer's was valued at $21.5 million when it was merged with Litton...
, of the Stouffer's
Stouffer's
Stouffer's is a brand of frozen prepared foods available in the United States and Canada. Stouffer's is known for such popular fare as meatloaf, salisbury steak, lasagna, macaroni and cheese, and ravioli. It also produces a line of reduced-fat products under the banner Lean...
frozen-food empire. Prior to Stouffer's purchase, the team was rumored to be relocated due to poor attendance. Despite the potential for a financially strong owner, Stouffer had some non-baseball related financial setbacks and, consequently, the team was cash-poor. In order to solve some financial problems, Stouffer had made an agreement to play a minimum of 30 home games in New Orleans with a view to a possible move there. After rejecting an offer from George Steinbrenner
George Steinbrenner
George Michael Steinbrenner III was an American businessman who was the principal owner and managing partner of Major League Baseball's New York Yankees. During Steinbrenner's 37-year ownership from 1973 to his death in July 2010, the longest in club history, the Yankees earned seven World Series...
and former Indian Al Rosen
Al Rosen
Albert Leonard Rosen , nicknamed "Al", "Flip", and the "Hebrew Hammer", is a former American professional baseball player who was a third baseman and right-handed slugger in the Major Leagues for ten seasons in tthe 1940s and 1950s.He played his entire 10-year career with the Cleveland Indians in...
, Stouffer sold the team in 1972 to a group led by Cleveland Cavaliers
Cleveland Cavaliers
The Cleveland Cavaliers are a professional basketball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They began playing in the National Basketball Association in 1970 as an expansion team...
and Cleveland Barons owner Nick Mileti
Nick Mileti
Nick James Mileti was, during the 1970s, the owner of the Cleveland Indians, Cleveland Cavaliers, Cleveland Crusaders hockey team, the Coliseum at Richfield and radio station "3WE" WWWE AM/1100 ....
. Steinbrenner went on to buy the New York Yankees in 1973.
Only five years later, Mileti's group sold the team for $11 million to a syndicate headed by trucking magnate Steve O'Neill and including former general manager and owner Gabe Paul. O'Neill's death in 1983 led to the team going on the market once more. His son, Patrick O'Neill, did not find a buyer until real estate magnates Richard and David Jacobs purchased the team in 1986.
The team was unable to move out of the cellar, with losing seasons between 1969 and 1975. One highlight was the acquisition of Gaylord Perry
Gaylord Perry
Gaylord Jackson Perry is a former Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. He pitched from 1962-1983 for eight different teams in his career. During a 22-year baseball career, Perry compiled 314 wins, 3,534 strikeouts, and a 3.11 earned run average...
in . The Indians traded fireballer "Sudden Sam" McDowell
Sam McDowell
Samuel Edward Thomas McDowell , is a former professional baseball pitcher. He played fifteen seasons in Major League Baseball, with the first 11 coming for the Cleveland Indians before a 1971 trade to the San Francisco Giants, followed by stints with the New York Yankees and Pittsburgh Pirates...
for Perry, who became the first Indian pitcher to win the Cy Young Award
Cy Young Award
The Cy Young Award is an honor given annually in baseball to the best pitchers in Major League Baseball , one each for the American League and National League . The award was first introduced in 1956 by Baseball Commissioner Ford Frick in honor of Hall of Fame pitcher Cy Young, who died in 1955...
. In , Cleveland broke another color barrier with the hiring of Frank Robinson
Frank Robinson
Frank Robinson , is a former Major League Baseball outfielder and manager. He played from 1956–1976, most notably for the Cincinnati Reds and the Baltimore Orioles. He is the only player to win league MVP honors in both the National and American Leagues...
as Major League Baseball's first African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
manager. Robinson served as player-manager and would provide a franchise highlight when he hit a pinch hit home run on Opening Day
Opening Day
Opening Day is the day on which professional baseball leagues begin their regular season. For Major League Baseball and most of the minor leagues, this day falls during the first week of April. For baseball fans, Opening Day serves as a symbol of rebirth; writer Thomas Boswell once penned a book...
. But the high profile signing of Wayne Garland
Wayne Garland
Marcus Wayne Garland was a Major League Baseball pitcher from 1973 to 1981 for the Baltimore Orioles and Cleveland Indians. Garland's best season came in 1976 when he posted a win–loss record of 20–7...
, a 20-game winner in Baltimore
Baltimore Orioles
The Baltimore Orioles are a professional baseball team based in Baltimore, Maryland in the United States. They are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's American League. One of the American League's eight charter franchises in 1901, it spent its first year as a major league...
, proved to be a disaster after Garland suffered from shoulder problems and went 28–48 over five years. The team failed to improve with Robinson as manager and he was fired in . In 1977, pitcher Dennis Eckersley
Dennis Eckersley
Dennis Lee Eckersley , nicknamed "Eck", is a former American Major League Baseball pitcher. Eckersley had success as a starter, but gained his greatest fame as a closer, becoming the first of only two pitchers in Major League history to have both a 20-win season and a 50-save season in a career .He...
threw a no-hitter against the California Angels
1977 California Angels season
The California Angels season involved the Angels finishing fifth in the American League West with a record of 74 wins and 88 losses.- Offseason :On January 6, 1977, Angels utility infielder Mike Miley died in a one-car accident in Baton Rouge, Louisiana....
. The next season, he would be dealt to the Boston Red Sox
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
where he won 20 games in 1978 and another 17 in 1979.
The 1970s also featured the infamous Ten Cent Beer Night
Ten Cent Beer Night
Ten Cent Beer Night was a promotion held by Major League Baseball's Cleveland Indians during a game against the Texas Rangers at Cleveland Municipal Stadium on June 4, 1974....
at Cleveland Municipal Stadium. The ill-conceived promotion at a game against the Texas Rangers
1974 Texas Rangers season
The Texas Rangers season involved the Rangers finishing second in the American League West with a record of 84 wins and 76 losses . It would be only the second time in franchise history that the club finished over .500 and the first since the club relocated to Arlington, Texas...
ended in a riot by fans and a forfeit by the Indians.
There were more bright spots in the 1980s. In May 1981, Len Barker
Len Barker
Leonard Harold Barker III , better known as Lenny Barker or Len Barker, is a former Major League Baseball right-handed starting pitcher. He pitched the tenth perfect game in baseball history. Barker pitched for the Texas Rangers , Cleveland Indians , Atlanta Braves and Milwaukee Brewers...
threw a perfect game
Perfect game
A perfect game is defined by Major League Baseball as a game in which a pitcher pitches a victory that lasts a minimum of nine innings and in which no opposing player reaches base. Thus, the pitcher cannot allow any hits, walks, hit batsmen, or any opposing player to reach base safely for any...
against the Toronto Blue Jays
Toronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays are a professional baseball team located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Blue Jays are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball 's American League ....
, joining Addie Joss as the only other Indian pitcher to do so. "Super Joe" Charbonneau
Joe Charboneau
Joseph Charboneau was a Major League Baseball player for the Cleveland Indians and is one of the most often-cited examples of a flash in the pan or of baseball's fabled sophomore jinx....
won the American League Rookie of the Year award. Unfortunately, Charboneau was out of baseball by 1983 after falling victim to back injuries and Barker, who was also hampered by injuries, never became a consistently dominant starting pitcher.
Eventually, the Indians traded Barker to the Atlanta Braves
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves are a professional baseball club based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Braves have played in Turner Field since 1997....
for Brett Butler and Brook Jacoby
Brook Jacoby
Brook Wallace Jacoby is a former Major League Baseball third baseman and the current hitting coach of the Cincinnati Reds. Jacoby played in the major leagues from 1981 through 1992, and in Japan in 1993. He batted and threw right-handed. His father Brook Wallace Jacoby Sr...
, who would become mainstays of the team for the remainder of the decade. Butler and Jacoby were joined by Joe Carter
Joe Carter
Joseph Christopher Carter is a former right fielder in Major League Baseball who played from to . Carter is most famous for hitting a walk-off home run to win the 1993 World Series for the Toronto Blue Jays....
, Mel Hall
Mel Hall
Melvin Hall Jr. is a former professional baseball player who played in Major League Baseball from 1981 to 1996 with the Chicago Cubs, Cleveland Indians, New York Yankees, and San Francisco Giants. He also played in Japan from 1993-1995...
, Julio Franco
Julio Franco
Julio César Robles Franco is a former Major League Baseball infielder and designated hitter. In , Franco was the oldest active player in the major leagues at the age of 49....
and Cory Snyder
Cory Snyder
James Cory Snyder is a former Major League Baseball player for the Cleveland Indians, Chicago White Sox, Toronto Blue Jays, San Francisco Giants, and Los Angeles Dodgers from 1986 to 1994. Snyder's best season came in 1987 with the Indians when he hit 33 home runs and had 82 runs batted in...
, which brought new hope to fans in the late 1980s.
Cleveland's struggles over the 30-year span were highlighted in the 1989 film Major League
Major League (film)
Major League is a 1989 American satire comedy film written and directed by David S. Ward, starring Tom Berenger, Charlie Sheen, Wesley Snipes, James Gammon, and Corbin Bernsen. Made for US$11 million, Major League grossed nearly US$50 million in domestic release...
, which comically depicted a hapless Cleveland ball club going from worst to first by the end of the film.
Organizational turnaround
Throughout the 1980s, Indians owners had pushed for a new stadium. Cleveland Stadium had been a symbol of the Indians' glory years in the 1940s and 1950s. However, during the lean years even crowds of 40,000 were swallowed up by the cavernous environment. The old stadium was not aging gracefully; chunks of concrete were falling off in sections and the old wooden pilings now petrified. In 1984, a proposal for a $150 million domed stadium was defeated in a referendum 2–1.Finally, in May 1990, Cuyahoga County
Cuyahoga County, Ohio
Cuyahoga County is a county located in the state of Ohio, United States. It is the most populous county in Ohio; as of the 2010 census, the population was 1,280,122. Its county seat is Cleveland. Cuyahoga County is part of Greater Cleveland, a metropolitan area, and Northeast Ohio, a...
voters passed an excise tax
Pigovian tax
A Pigovian tax is a tax levied on a market activity that generates negative externalities. The tax is intended to correct the market outcome. In the presence of negative externalities, the social cost of a market activity is not covered by the private cost of the activity...
on sales of alcohol and cigarettes in the county. The tax proceeds would be used to finance the building of the Gateway Sports and Entertainment Complex
Gateway Sports and Entertainment Complex
The Gateway Sports and Entertainment Complex is a multipurpose campus located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio. It comprises two sports facilities, a transitional space known as Gateway Plaza, and two parking garages...
which would include Jacobs Field
Jacobs Field
Progressive Field is a ballpark located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, and is the home of the Cleveland Indians of Major League Baseball and the American League. Along with Quicken Loans Arena, it is part of the Gateway Sports and Entertainment Complex...
and Gund Arena
Quicken Loans Arena
Quicken Loans Arena , is a multi-purpose arena, in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States....
for the Cleveland Cavaliers
Cleveland Cavaliers
The Cleveland Cavaliers are a professional basketball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They began playing in the National Basketball Association in 1970 as an expansion team...
basketball team. The team had new ownership and a new stadium on the way. They now needed a winning team.
The team's fortunes started to turn in , ironically with a very unpopular trade. The team sent power-hitting outfielder Joe Carter
Joe Carter
Joseph Christopher Carter is a former right fielder in Major League Baseball who played from to . Carter is most famous for hitting a walk-off home run to win the 1993 World Series for the Toronto Blue Jays....
to the San Diego Padres
San Diego Padres
The San Diego Padres are a Major League Baseball team based in San Diego, California. They play in the National League Western Division. Founded in 1969, the Padres have won the National League Pennant twice, in 1984 and 1998, losing in the World Series both times...
for two unproven players, Sandy Alomar, Jr.
Sandy Alomar, Jr.
Santos "Sandy" Alomar, Jr., or in the Spanish-language naming system Santos Alomar Velázquez , is a former Major League Baseball catcher who played for the San Diego Padres , Cleveland Indians , Chicago White Sox and , Colorado Rockies , Texas Rangers , Los Angeles Dodgers , and New York Mets...
and Carlos Baerga
Carlos Baerga
Carlos Obed Baerga Ortiz is a former Major League Baseball player. After spending most of his career as a second baseman, he was used at various positions late in his career.-Cleveland Indians:...
. Alomar made an immediate impact, not only being elected to the All-Star team
1990 Major League Baseball All-Star Game
The 1990 Major League Baseball All-Star Game was the 61st playing of the midsummer classic between the all-stars of the American League and National League , the two leagues comprising Major League Baseball. The game was held on July 10, 1990 at Wrigley Field in Chicago, Illinois, the home of the...
but also winning Cleveland's fourth Rookie of the Year
MLB Rookie of the Year Award
In Major League Baseball, the Rookie of the Year Award is annually given to one player from each league as voted on by the Baseball Writers Association of America . The award was established in 1940 by the Chicago chapter of the BBWAA, which selected an annual winner from 1940 through 1946...
award and a Gold Glove
Gold Glove Award
The Rawlings Gold Glove Award, usually referred to as the Gold Glove, is the award given annually to the Major League Baseball players judged to have exhibited superior individual fielding performances at each fielding position in both the National League and the American League , as voted by the...
. Baerga would become a three-time All-Star with consistent offensive production.
Indians general manager John Hart
John Hart (baseball)
John Henry Hart is an American Major League Baseball executive. In addition, he is the former general manager of the Cleveland Indians and Texas Rangers; now he currently serves as senior adviser, baseball operations, for the Rangers...
made a number of moves that would finally bring success to the team. In , he hired former Indian Mike Hargrove
Mike Hargrove
Dudley Michael Hargrove is a former Major League Baseball first baseman and manager. He is currently employed as an advisor with the Cleveland Indians....
to manage
Manager (baseball)
In baseball, the field manager is an individual who is responsible for matters of team strategy on the field and team leadership. Managers are typically assisted by between one and six assistant coaches, whose responsibilities are specialized...
and traded catcher Eddie Taubensee
Eddie Taubensee
Edward Kenneth Taubensee is a former catcher in Major League Baseball.Taubensee played for three different ballclubs during his career: the Cleveland Indians , Houston Astros , and Cincinnati Reds . He made his major league debut on May 18, 1991, and played his final game on October 7, 2001...
to the Houston Astros
Houston Astros
The Houston Astros are a Major League Baseball team located in Houston, Texas. They are a member of the National League Central division. The Astros are expected to join the American League West division in 2013. Since , they have played their home games at Minute Maid Park, known as Enron Field...
who, with a surplus of outfielders, were willing to part with Kenny Lofton
Kenny Lofton
Kenneth Lofton is a former Major League Baseball outfielder known for his great speed on the base paths as well as in the field, award-winning defensive play , timely hitting, and playful spirit. He batted and threw left-handed...
. Lofton finished second in AL Rookie of the Year balloting with a .285 average and 66 stolen bases.
The Indians were named "Organization of the Year" by Baseball America in 1992, in response to the appearance of offensive bright spots and an improving farm system
Farm team
In sports, a farm team, farm system, feeder team or nursery club, is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful players can move on to a higher level at a given point...
.
The team suffered a tragedy during spring training
Spring training
In Major League Baseball, spring training is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for roster and position spots, and gives existing team players practice time prior to competitive play...
of , when a boat carrying pitchers Steve Olin
Steve Olin
Steven Robert Olin was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for four seasons in the American League with the Cleveland Indians. In 195 career games, Olin pitched 273 innings and posted a win–loss record of 16–19, with 48 saves, 118 games finished, and a 3.10 earned...
, Tim Crews
Tim Crews
Stanley Timothy Crews was a Major League Baseball pitcher who pitched six seasons with the Los Angeles Dodgers -- to . He was granted free agency after the 1992 season and signed with the Cleveland Indians on January 22, 1993....
, and Bob Ojeda
Bob Ojeda
Robert Michael Ojeda is a former Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher. Ojeda is best remembered as an anchor in the 1986 World Series Champion New York Mets starting rotation , and for being the lone survivor of a March 22, boating accident that killed fellow Cleveland Indians pitchers...
crashed into a pier. Olin and Crews were killed, and Ojeda was seriously injured. (Ojeda missed most of the season, and would retire the following year).
By the end of the 1993 season, the team was in transition, leaving Cleveland Stadium and fielding a talented nucleus of young players. Many of those players came from the Indians' new AAA
AAA (baseball)
Triple-A refers to the highest level of play in minor league baseball in the United States and Mexico.-Purpose:Triple-A teams' main purpose is to prepare players for the Major Leagues:...
farm team, the Charlotte Knights
Charlotte Knights
The Charlotte Knights are a minor league baseball team representing Charlotte, North Carolina. The team, which plays in the International League, is the Triple-A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox of the American League...
, who won the International League
International League
The International League is a minor league baseball league that operates in the eastern United States. Like the Pacific Coast League and the Mexican League, it plays at the Triple-A level, which is one step below Major League Baseball. It was so named because it had teams in both the United States...
title that year.
New beginning
John Hart (baseball)
John Henry Hart is an American Major League Baseball executive. In addition, he is the former general manager of the Cleveland Indians and Texas Rangers; now he currently serves as senior adviser, baseball operations, for the Rangers...
and team owner Richard Jacobs managed to turn the team's fortunes around. The Indians opened Jacobs Field in 1994 with the aim of improving on the prior season's sixth-place finish. The Indians were only one game behind the division-leading Chicago White Sox
1994 Chicago White Sox season
The 1994 Chicago White Sox season was the White Sox's 94th season in the major leagues, and their 95th season overall. They finished with a record 67-46, good enough for 1st place in the American League Central, 1 game ahead of the 2nd place Cleveland Indians....
on August 12 when a players strike wiped out the rest of the season.
1995 season: first since 1954
Having contended for the division in the aborted 1994 season, Cleveland sprinted to a 100–44 record (18 games were lost to player/owner negotiations) in 1995 winning its first ever divisional title. Veterans Dennis MartinezDennis Martínez
José Dennis Martínez Emilia , nicknamed "El Presidente" , is a former Major League Baseball pitcher...
, Orel Hershiser
Orel Hershiser
Orel Leonard Hershiser IV is a former right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball. He is currently an analyst for Baseball Tonight and Sunday Night Baseball on ESPN and a professional poker player for...
and Eddie Murray
Eddie Murray
Eddie Clarence Murray , nicknamed "Steady Eddie", is a former Major League Baseball first baseman and designated hitter. He was known as one of the most reliable and productive hitters of his era. Murray is regarded as one of the best switch hitters ever to play the game...
combined with a young core of players including Albert Belle
Albert Belle
Albert Jojuan Belle is a former American Major League Baseball outfielder for the Cleveland Indians, Chicago White Sox, and Baltimore Orioles...
, Jim Thome
Jim Thome
James Howard "Jim" Thome is a Major League Baseball player for the Philadelphia Phillies. He is the eighth player to hit 600 home runs in the major leagues. He is widely considered a future Hall of Famer.-Cleveland Indians :...
, Manny Ramírez
Manny Ramírez
Manuel "Manny" Arístides Ramírez Onelcida is a retired Dominican-American professional baseball outfielder. He was recognized for great batting skill and power, a nine-time Silver Slugger and one of 25 players to hit 500 career home runs. Ramirez's 21 grand slams are third all-time, and his 28...
and Charles Nagy
Charles Nagy
Charles Harrison Nagy is an American former Major League Baseball All-Star right-handed pitcher who played for 14 seasons in the major leagues from to , mostly with the Cleveland Indians, and currently serves as the pitching coach for the Arizona Diamondbacks.-Early life and amateur career:Nagy...
to lead the league in team batting average as well as team ERA.
1995 poseason
After defeating the Boston Red Sox
1995 Boston Red Sox season
The Boston Red Sox season was a season in American baseball. It involved the Red Sox finishing 1st in the American League East with a record of 86 wins and 58 losses...
in the Division Series
1995 American League Division Series
-Seattle Mariners vs. New York Yankees:-Game 1, Tuesday, October 3:Jacobs Field in Cleveland, OhioAfter a 39-minute rain delay, Game 1 got underway with two veterans, Roger Clemens and Dennis Martínez, starting the opener. The Red Sox jumped in front first in the third on John Valentin's two run...
and the Seattle Mariners
1995 Seattle Mariners season
The Seattle Mariners' 1995 season was the 19th in the history of the franchise. The team finished with a regular season record of 79–66, tying the California Angels for first in the American League West...
in the ALCS
1995 American League Championship Series
-Game 1:Tuesday, October 10, 1995 at Kingdome in Seattle, WashingtonThe Indians called on the veteran Dennis Martinez for Game 1. The Mariners rode the arm of Bob Wolcott. Wolcott got off to a shaky start by walking three straight hitters to open the game. But he would get out of the bases loaded...
, Cleveland clinched a World Series
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball, played between the American League and National League champions since 1903. The winner of the World Series championship is determined through a best-of-seven playoff and awarded the Commissioner's Trophy...
berth, for the first time since 1954. The World Series ended in disappointment with the Indians falling in six games to the Atlanta Braves
1995 Atlanta Braves season
The 1995 Atlanta Braves season was the 125th season in the history of the franchise and 30th season in the city of Atlanta. The team finished the strike-shortened season with a record of 90–54, the best in the National League, en route to winning the World Series. For the sixth straight season,...
.
1996
The Indians repeated as AL Central champions in , but lost to the Baltimore Orioles1996 Baltimore Orioles season
The Baltimore Orioles season in which the Orioles finishing 2nd in the American League East with a record of 88 wins and 74 losses and qualifying for the post-season as the Wild Card team. The Orioles broke the all-time record for most home runs hit by a team with 257...
in the Division Series
1996 American League Division Series
-Texas Rangers vs. New York Yankees:-Game 1, October 1:Oriole Park at Camden Yards in Baltimore, MarylandIt was Baltimore's first playoff game since the clinching Game 5 of the 1983 World Series. For the Indians, it was their second consecutive division title. Charles Nagy and David Wells matched...
. Notably in 1996, tickets for every home game for the Indians sold out before opening day.
1997 season: two outs away!
In 1997 Cleveland started slow but finished with an 86–75 record. Taking their third consecutive AL Central title, the Indians defeated the heavily-favored New York Yankees in the Division Series1997 American League Division Series
-Cleveland Indians vs. New York Yankees:-Game 1, October 1:Kingdome in Seattle, WashingtonThe Orioles had gone wire-to-wire and the Mariners had won the AL West for the second time in the decade. In Game 1, both teams had their best on the mound: Mike Mussina for the Orioles and Randy Johnson for...
, 3–2. After defeating the Baltimore Orioles in the ALCS
1997 American League Championship Series
-Game 1:Wednesday, October 8, 1997 at Oriole Park at Camden Yards in Baltimore, Maryland-Game 2:Thursday, October 9, 1997 at Oriole Park at Camden Yards in Baltimore, Maryland...
, Cleveland went on to face the Florida Marlins
1997 Florida Marlins season
The 1997 Florida Marlins season started off with the team trying to improve on their record from 1996. Their manager was Jim Leyland. They played home games at Pro Player Stadium...
in the World Series
1997 World Series
-Game 1:Saturday, October 18, 1997 at Pro Player Stadium in Miami Gardens, FloridaThe first World Series game in the state of Florida, Game 1 featured a youngster and a veteran facing each other on the mound...
which featured the coldest game in World Series history. With the series tied after game six, the Indians went into the ninth inning of Game 7 with a 2–1 lead, but closer Jose Mesa
José Mesa
José Ramón Nova Mesa [MAY-sah] is a former Major League Baseball right-handed relief pitcher. His nickname was "Joe Table," the literal translation of his name in the English language....
allowed the Marlins to tie the game. In the eleventh inning, Edgar Rentería
Edgar Rentería
Edgar Enrique Rentería Herazo , nicknamed "The Barranquilla Baby," is a Colombian professional baseball shortstop. He throws and bats right-handed. Previously, he has played for the Florida Marlins, the St...
drove in the winning run giving the Marlins their first championship.
Cleveland became the first team to lose the World Series after carrying the lead into the bottom of the ninth inning of the seventh game.
1998
In 19981998 Major League Baseball season
*American League Championship Series MVP: David Wells**American League Division Series:*National League Championship Series MVP: Sterling Hitchcock**National League Division Series*All-Star Game, July 7 at Coors Field: American League, 13-8; Roberto Alomar, MVP...
, the Indians made the playoffs for the fourth straight year. After defeating the wild-card Boston Red Sox
1998 Boston Red Sox season
The Boston Red Sox season was a season in American baseball. It involved the Red Sox finishing 2nd in the American League East with a record of 92 wins and 70 losses.-Offseason:...
three games to one in the first round of the playoffs
1998 American League Division Series
-Cleveland Indians vs. Boston Red Sox:-Game 1, September 29:Yankee Stadium in Bronx, New YorkScott Brosius was the hero of Game 1, as Todd Stottlemyre faced David Wells. In the bottom of the second, Stottlemyre yielded two runs when Brosius singled in Jorge Posada after Chad Curtis doubled and...
, Cleveland lost the 1998 ALCS
1998 American League Championship Series
-Game 1:Tuesday, October 6, 1998 at Yankee Stadium in Bronx, New YorkCleveland came in as heavy underdogs, but also were the defending American League Champions. In Game 1, the Yankees got off to a good start, by hitting four straight singles in the bottom of the first to score two runs...
in six games to the New York Yankees, who had come into the playoffs with 114 wins in the regular season.
1999
For the season, Cleveland added relief pitcher Ricardo RincónRicardo Rincón
Ricardo Rincón Espinoza was a Major League Baseball relief pitcher.Rincón was a left-handed specialist who spent nearly his entire career as a middle reliever and setup pitcher. In his 10-year career, Rincón never started a game and only accumulated 21 saves...
and Roberto Alomar
Roberto Alomar
Roberto "Robbie" Alomar Velázquez is a former Major League Baseball player , regarded by many as one of the best second basemen in MLB history. During his career he won more Gold Gloves than any other second baseman in history, and also won the second-most Silver Slugger Awards for a second...
, brother of catcher Sandy Alomar, and won the Central Division title for its fifth consecutive playoff appearance. The team scored 1,009 runs, becoming the first (and to date only) team since the 1950 Boston Red Sox to score more than 1,000 runs in a season. This time, Cleveland did not make it past the first round, losing the Division Series
1999 American League Division Series
-Cleveland Indians vs. Boston Red Sox:-Game 1, October 5:Yankee Stadium in Bronx, New YorkThe Yankees once again swept the Rangers and held them to one run through three games. In Game 1, Aaron Sele went against Orlando Hernández...
to the Red Sox
1999 Boston Red Sox season
The 1999 Boston Red Sox season involved the Red Sox' finishing 2nd in the American League East with a record of 94 wins and 68 losses. Pedro Martinez won the AL Cy Young Award and become the second pitcher to win the Cy Young Award in both leagues....
, despite taking a two-games-to-none lead in the series. In game three, Indians starter Dave Burba went down with an injury in the 4th inning. Four pitchers, including presumed game four starter Jaret Wright
Jaret Wright
Jaret Samuel Wright is an American former Major League Baseball starting pitcher, who played 10 years for five teams. He is the son of former major league pitcher Clyde Wright.-Early life and education:...
, surrendered nine runs in relief. Without a long reliever or emergency starter on the playoff roster, Hargrove started both Bartolo Colón
Bartolo Colón
Bartolo Colón is a Dominican professional baseball pitcher who is currently a free agent. He played in Major League Baseball from 1997 to 2009 and again in 2011...
and Charles Nagy
Charles Nagy
Charles Harrison Nagy is an American former Major League Baseball All-Star right-handed pitcher who played for 14 seasons in the major leagues from to , mostly with the Cleveland Indians, and currently serves as the pitching coach for the Arizona Diamondbacks.-Early life and amateur career:Nagy...
in games four and five on only three days rest. The Indians lost game four 23–7 and game five 12–8. Four days later, Hargrove was dismissed as manager.
2000
In 20002000 Major League Baseball season
The 2000 Major League Baseball season ended with the New York Yankees defeating the New York Mets in Game 5 of the World Series, known as the Subway Series because fans could take the Subway to and from every game of the Series. An all-time record 5,693 home runs were hit during the regular season...
, the Indians had a 44–42 start, but caught fire after the All Star break and went 46–30 the rest of the way to finish 90–72. The team had one of the league's best offenses that year and a defense that yielded three gold gloves. However, they ended up five games behind the Chicago White Sox
2000 Chicago White Sox season
The 2000 Chicago White Sox season was the White Sox's 101st season. They finished with a record 95-67, good enough for 1st place in the American League Central, 5 games ahead the 2nd place Cleveland Indians.-2000 Opening Day Lineup:Ray Durham, 2b...
in the Central division and missed the wild card by one game to the Seattle Mariners
2000 Seattle Mariners season
The Seattle Mariners' 2000 season was the franchise's 24th, and ended with the Mariners losing the American League Championship Series to the New York Yankees in 6 games....
. Mid-season trades brought Bob Wickman
Bob Wickman
Robert Joe Wickman is a former Major League Baseball relief pitcher. Wickman played for the New York Yankees , Milwaukee Brewers , Cleveland Indians , Atlanta Braves , and Arizona Diamondbacks . He batted and threw right-handed...
and Jake Westbrook
Jake Westbrook
Jacob Cauthen "Jake" Westbrook is an American Major League Baseball right-handed starting pitcher currently with the St. Louis Cardinals. He is known as a sinker ball pitcher and has also hit a grand slam home run....
to Cleveland, and free agent Manny Ramírez
Manny Ramírez
Manuel "Manny" Arístides Ramírez Onelcida is a retired Dominican-American professional baseball outfielder. He was recognized for great batting skill and power, a nine-time Silver Slugger and one of 25 players to hit 500 career home runs. Ramirez's 21 grand slams are third all-time, and his 28...
departed for Boston after the season.
The Indians set a Major League record for most pitchers used in a single season. Colon, Burba, and Chuck Finley
Chuck Finley
Charles Edward "Chuck" Finley is an American former Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher. He pitched from 1986-2002 for three different teams, but pitched primarily with the California Angels...
posted strong seasons, and the bullpen was solid. But with Jaret Wright and Charles Nagy spending months on the disabled list, the team could not solidify the final two spots in the rotation. Other starting pitchers that season combined for a total of 346⅔ innings and 265 earned runs for an ERA of 6.88.
In 2000, Larry Dolan
Larry Dolan
Lawrence J. Dolan is an attorney and the owner of the Cleveland Indians.-Education:Dolan attended St. Ignatius High School and got his law degree from University of Notre Dame in 1956...
bought the Indians for $320 million from Richard Jacobs, who, along with his late brother David, had paid $45 million for the club in 1986. The sale set a record at the time for the sale of a baseball franchise.
2001
20012001 Major League Baseball season
The Major League Baseball season finished with the Arizona Diamondbacks defeating the New York Yankees in a Game 7 of the 2001 World Series. The attacks of September 11 pushed the end of the regular-season from September 30 to October 7. Because of that, the World Series was not completed until...
saw a return to the playoffs. After the departures of Manny Ramírez
Manny Ramírez
Manuel "Manny" Arístides Ramírez Onelcida is a retired Dominican-American professional baseball outfielder. He was recognized for great batting skill and power, a nine-time Silver Slugger and one of 25 players to hit 500 career home runs. Ramirez's 21 grand slams are third all-time, and his 28...
and Sandy Alomar, Jr.
Sandy Alomar, Jr.
Santos "Sandy" Alomar, Jr., or in the Spanish-language naming system Santos Alomar Velázquez , is a former Major League Baseball catcher who played for the San Diego Padres , Cleveland Indians , Chicago White Sox and , Colorado Rockies , Texas Rangers , Los Angeles Dodgers , and New York Mets...
, the Indians signed Ellis Burks and former MVP
MLB Most Valuable Player Award
The Major League Baseball Most Valuable Player Award is an annual Major League Baseball award, given to one outstanding player in the American League and one in the National League. Since 1931, it has been awarded by the Baseball Writers Association of America...
Juan González, who helped the Indians win the Central division with a 91–71 record.
One of the highlights came on August 5, 2001, when the Indians completed the biggest comeback in MLB History. Cleveland rallied to close a 14–2 deficit in the sixth inning to defeat the Seattle Mariners
2001 Seattle Mariners season
The Seattle Mariners' 2001 season was the 25th since franchise inception, and ended with the Mariners winning their third American League West division title, with a record of 116-46. The team set an American League record for single-season wins, and tied the Major League record set by the Chicago...
15–14 in 11 innings. The Mariners, who won a record 116 games that season, had a strong bullpen, and Indians manager Charlie Manuel
Charlie Manuel
Charles Fuqua Manuel, Jr. is a former Major League Baseball and Nippon Professional Baseball outfielder and current Major League Baseball manager of the Philadelphia Phillies...
had already pulled many of his starters with the game seemingly out of reach.
Seattle and Cleveland met in the first round of the playoffs
2001 American League Division Series
-New York Yankees vs. Oakland Athletics:-Game 1, October 9:Safeco Field in Seattle, Washington-Game 2, October 11:Safeco Field in Seattle, Washington-Game 3, October 13:Jacobs Field in Cleveland, Ohio-Game 4, October 14:Jacobs Field in Cleveland, Ohio...
, with the Indians taking a two-games-to-one lead. However, with Freddy Garcia, Jamie Moyer and a strong bullpen, the Mariners won Games 4 and 5 to deny the Indians their first playoff series victory since 1998. In the 2001 offseason, GM John Hart
John Hart (baseball)
John Henry Hart is an American Major League Baseball executive. In addition, he is the former general manager of the Cleveland Indians and Texas Rangers; now he currently serves as senior adviser, baseball operations, for the Rangers...
resigned and his assistant Mark Shapiro
Mark Shapiro
-Biography:Shapiro has been in the Cleveland Indians organization since 1991, when he was recommended by former Tribe GM Hank Peters. He officially became the general manager in 2001 when John Hart left....
took the reins.
First "rebuilding of the team"
Shapiro moved to rebuild by dealing aging veterans for younger talent. He traded Roberto AlomarRoberto Alomar
Roberto "Robbie" Alomar Velázquez is a former Major League Baseball player , regarded by many as one of the best second basemen in MLB history. During his career he won more Gold Gloves than any other second baseman in history, and also won the second-most Silver Slugger Awards for a second...
to the New York Mets
New York Mets
The New York Mets are a professional baseball team based in the borough of Queens in New York City, New York. They belong to Major League Baseball's National League East Division. One of baseball's first expansion teams, the Mets were founded in 1962 to replace New York's departed National League...
for a package that included outfielder Matt Lawton
Matt Lawton
Matthew "Matt" Lawton, Jr. is a retired professional baseball whose career spanned 15 seasons, including 12 seasons in Major League Baseball. Lawton, an outfielder, made his major league debut September 5, 1995, with the Minnesota Twins, who signed him four years prior...
and prospects Alex Escobar
Alex Escobar
Alexander José Escobar [ess-COE-bar] is a Major League Baseball outfielder for the Colorado Rockies organization....
and Billy Traber
Billy Traber
William Henry "Billy" Traber, Jr. is a left-handed pitcher who is currently a free agent.-College:...
. When the team fell out of contention in mid-, Shapiro fired manager Charlie Manuel
Charlie Manuel
Charles Fuqua Manuel, Jr. is a former Major League Baseball and Nippon Professional Baseball outfielder and current Major League Baseball manager of the Philadelphia Phillies...
and traded pitching ace Bartolo Colón
Bartolo Colón
Bartolo Colón is a Dominican professional baseball pitcher who is currently a free agent. He played in Major League Baseball from 1997 to 2009 and again in 2011...
for prospects Brandon Phillips
Brandon Phillips
Brandon Emil Phillips is a second baseman for Major League Baseball's Cincinnati Reds. The Raleigh, North Carolina native was selected in the second round of the 1999 draft by the former Montreal Expos after signing a letter of intent to play both baseball and football at the University of Georgia...
, Cliff Lee
Cliff Lee
Clifton Phifer "Cliff" Lee is a Major League Baseball left-handed starting pitcher for the Philadelphia Phillies. Lee has also played for the Cleveland Indians, the Seattle Mariners, and the Texas Rangers....
, and Grady Sizemore
Grady Sizemore
Gradius "Grady" Sizemore III is an American professional baseball outfielder with the Cleveland Indians of Major League Baseball.-Early life:...
; acquired Travis Hafner
Travis Hafner
Travis Lee Hafner is a left-handed hitting designated hitter for the Cleveland Indians of the American League Central Division. His nickname, "Pronk", was given to him by former teammate Bill Selby during spring training of when people sometimes referred to him as "The Project" and other times...
from the Rangers
Texas Rangers (baseball)
The Texas Rangers are a professional baseball team in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, based in Arlington, Texas. The Rangers are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League, and are the reigning A.L. Western Division and A.L. Champions. Since , the Rangers have...
for Ryan Drese
Ryan Drese
Ryan Thomas Drese is an American professional baseball pitcher currently in the Houston Astros organization. He is a graduate of the University of California Berkeley and Bishop O'Dowd High School in Oakland, California....
and Einar Diaz
Einar Diaz
Einar Antonio Díaz is a former Major League Baseball catcher.Díaz was called up in by the Cleveland Indians to back up then-starting catcher Sandy Alomar, Jr. He played sparingly from 1996-, and in he got his first starting job with the Indians due to an injury to Alomar...
; and picked up Coco Crisp
Coco Crisp
Covelli Loyce "Coco" Crisp is an American professional baseball center fielder. Crisp is a switch-hitter and throws right-handed...
from the St. Louis Cardinals
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are a professional baseball team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division in the National League of Major League Baseball. The Cardinals have won eleven World Series championships, the most of any National League team, and second overall only to...
for aging starter Chuck Finley
Chuck Finley
Charles Edward "Chuck" Finley is an American former Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher. He pitched from 1986-2002 for three different teams, but pitched primarily with the California Angels...
. Jim Thome
Jim Thome
James Howard "Jim" Thome is a Major League Baseball player for the Philadelphia Phillies. He is the eighth player to hit 600 home runs in the major leagues. He is widely considered a future Hall of Famer.-Cleveland Indians :...
left after the season, going to the Phillies for a larger contract.
Young Indians teams finished far out of contention in 2002 and under new manager Eric Wedge
Eric Wedge
Eric Michael Wedge is a Major League Baseball manager and former catcher, and is the current manager of the Seattle Mariners. As a player, Wedge attended Northrop High School in Fort Wayne and played on the school's state champion baseball team in 1983...
. They posted strong offensive numbers in , but continued to struggle with a bullpen that blew more than 20 saves
Save (sport)
In baseball, a save is credited to a pitcher who finishes a game for the winning team under certain prescribed circumstances. The number of saves, or percentage of save opportunities successfully converted, is an oft-cited statistic of relief pitchers...
. A highlight of the season was a 22–0 victory over the New York Yankees
2004 New York Yankees season
The New York Yankees' 2004 season was the 102nd season for the Yankees. The Yankees opened the season by playing two games against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in Japan on March 30, 2004. The team finished with a record of 101-61, finishing 3 games ahead of the Boston Red Sox in the AL East. New...
on August 31, one of the worst defeats suffered by the Yankees in team history.
In early , the offense got off to a poor start. After a brief July slump, the Indians caught fire in August, and cut a 15.5 game deficit in the Central Division down to 1.5 games. However, the season came to a end as the Indians went on to lose six of their last seven games, five of them by one run, missing the playoffs by only two games. Shapiro was named Executive of the Year
The Sporting News Executive of the Year Award
The Sporting News Executive of the Year Award was established in 1936 by The Sporting News and is given annually to one executive — including general managers — in Major League Baseball....
in 2005. The next season
2006 in baseball
-Headline Event of the Year:*The 2006 World Baseball Classic final 4 teams are Japan, Cuba, Korea and the Dominican Republic, with the United States at 3–3 failing to qualify for the semi-finals. Under the leadership of manager Sadaharu Oh and veterans Ichiro Suzuki and Daisuke Matsuzaka, Japan ...
, the club made several roster changes, while retaining its nucleus of young players. The off-season was highlighted by the acquisition of top prospect Andy Marté
Andy Marté
Andy Manuel Marté is a Dominican professional baseball third baseman with the Pittsburgh Pirates organization in Major League Baseball. On December 1, 2010, Marte signed a minor league deal with the Pirates.-Career:Marté signed as a free agent with the Atlanta Braves in 2000, and succeeded at...
from the Boston Red Sox
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
. The Indians had a solid offensive season, led by career years from Travis Hafner
Travis Hafner
Travis Lee Hafner is a left-handed hitting designated hitter for the Cleveland Indians of the American League Central Division. His nickname, "Pronk", was given to him by former teammate Bill Selby during spring training of when people sometimes referred to him as "The Project" and other times...
and Grady Sizemore
Grady Sizemore
Gradius "Grady" Sizemore III is an American professional baseball outfielder with the Cleveland Indians of Major League Baseball.-Early life:...
. Hafner, despite missing the last month of the season, tied the single season grand slam
Grand slam (baseball)
In the sport of baseball, a grand slam is a home run hit with all three bases occupied by baserunners , thereby scoring four runs—the most possible in one play. According to The Dickson Baseball Dictionary, the term originated in the card game of contract bridge, in which a grand slam involves...
record of six, which was set in by Don Mattingly
Don Mattingly
Donald Arthur "Don" Mattingly is a former Major League Baseball first baseman and current manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers. Nicknamed "The Hit Man" and "Donnie Baseball", he played his entire 14-year baseball career for the New York Yankees...
. Despite the solid offensive performance, the bullpen struggled with 23 blown saves (a Major League worst), and the Indians finished a disappointing fourth.
In , Shapiro signed veteran help for the bullpen and outfield in the offseason. Veterans Aaron Fultz
Aaron Fultz
Richard Aaron Fultz is a retired Major League Baseball relief pitcher.Drafted by the San Francisco Giants in the 6th round of the 1992 Major League Baseball Draft, Fultz spent the first three seasons of his Major League career with them , compiling a 10-5 record in 167 games played...
, and Joe Borowski joined Rafael Betancourt
Rafael Betancourt
Rafael Jose Betancourt is a Major League Baseball right-handed relief pitcher for the Colorado Rockies. He was originally signed as an amateur free agent by the Boston Red Sox in September 1999. The Red Sox released him following the 1999 season and then re-signed him as a free agent in December...
in the Indians bullpen. The Indians improved significantly over the prior year and went into the All-Star break in second place. The team brought back Kenny Lofton
Kenny Lofton
Kenneth Lofton is a former Major League Baseball outfielder known for his great speed on the base paths as well as in the field, award-winning defensive play , timely hitting, and playful spirit. He batted and threw left-handed...
for his third stint with the team in late July. The Indians finished with a 96–66 record tied with the Red Sox for best in baseball, their seventh Central Division title in 13 years and their first post-season trip since 2001.
2007 American League Division Series
-Cleveland Indians vs. New York Yankees:-Game 1, October 3:Fenway Park in Boston, MassachusettsIn Game 1, Boston starter Josh Beckett threw a complete-game shut out, allowing the Red Sox to win the opener...
three games to one. This series will be most remembered for the swarm of bugs that overtook the field in the later innings of game 2. They also jumped out to a three-games-to-one lead over the Red Sox in the American League Championship Series
2007 American League Championship Series
-Game 1:Friday, October 12, 2007 at Fenway Park in Boston, MassachusettsIn Game 1, the Cleveland Indians took the lead when Travis Hafner hit a home run to deep right field in the first inning against Josh Beckett. Beckett retired the next ten batters in a row, finishing by striking out seven while...
. The season ended in disappointment when Boston swept the final three games to advance to the 2007 World Series
2007 World Series
-Game 1:Wednesday, October 24, 2007 at Fenway Park in Boston, MassachusettsThe Red Sox cruised to a blowout win in Game 1 behind ALCS MVP Josh Beckett, who struck out nine batters, including the first four he faced, en route to his fourth win of the 2007 postseason...
.
Despite the loss, Cleveland players took home a number of awards. Grady Sizemore
Grady Sizemore
Gradius "Grady" Sizemore III is an American professional baseball outfielder with the Cleveland Indians of Major League Baseball.-Early life:...
, who had a .995 fielding percentage
Fielding percentage
In baseball statistics, fielding percentage, also known as fielding average, is a measure that reflects the percentage of times a defensive player properly handles a batted or thrown ball...
and only two errors in 405 chances, won the Gold Glove award
Rawlings Gold Glove Award
The Rawlings Gold Glove Award, usually referred to as the Gold Glove, is the award given annually to the Major League Baseball players judged to have exhibited superior individual fielding performances at each fielding position in both the National League and the American League , as voted by the...
, Cleveland's first since 2001. Indians Pitcher CC Sabathia won the second Cy Young Award
Cy Young Award
The Cy Young Award is an honor given annually in baseball to the best pitchers in Major League Baseball , one each for the American League and National League . The award was first introduced in 1956 by Baseball Commissioner Ford Frick in honor of Hall of Fame pitcher Cy Young, who died in 1955...
in team history with a 19–7 record, a 3.21 ERA and an MLB-leading 241 innings pitched
Innings pitched
In baseball, innings pitched are the number of innings a pitcher has completed, measured by the number of batters and baserunners that are put out while the pitcher on the pitching mound in a game. Three outs made is equal to one inning pitched. One out counts as one-third of an inning, and two...
. Eric Wedge
Eric Wedge
Eric Michael Wedge is a Major League Baseball manager and former catcher, and is the current manager of the Seattle Mariners. As a player, Wedge attended Northrop High School in Fort Wayne and played on the school's state champion baseball team in 1983...
was awarded the first Manager of the Year Award
Manager of the Year Award
In Major League Baseball, the Manager of the Year Award is an honor given annually since 1983 to the best managers in the American League and the National League . The winner is voted on by 28 members of the Baseball Writers Association of America . Each places a vote for first, second, and third...
in team history. Shapiro was named to his second Executive of the Year
The Sporting News Executive of the Year Award
The Sporting News Executive of the Year Award was established in 1936 by The Sporting News and is given annually to one executive — including general managers — in Major League Baseball....
in 2007.
Second "rebuilding of the team"
The Indians struggled during the 2008 season. Injuries to sluggers Travis HafnerTravis Hafner
Travis Lee Hafner is a left-handed hitting designated hitter for the Cleveland Indians of the American League Central Division. His nickname, "Pronk", was given to him by former teammate Bill Selby during spring training of when people sometimes referred to him as "The Project" and other times...
and Victor Martinez, as well as starting pitchers Jake Westbrook
Jake Westbrook
Jacob Cauthen "Jake" Westbrook is an American Major League Baseball right-handed starting pitcher currently with the St. Louis Cardinals. He is known as a sinker ball pitcher and has also hit a grand slam home run....
and Fausto Carmona
Fausto Carmona
Fausto C. Carmona is a right-handed pitcher for the Cleveland Indians of Major League Baseball. Carmona made his major league debut with the Indians on April 15, 2006...
led to a poor start. The Indians, falling to last place for a short time in June and July, traded CC Sabathia to the Milwaukee Brewers
Milwaukee Brewers
The Milwaukee Brewers are a professional baseball team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, currently playing in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
for prospects Matt LaPorta, Rob Bryson, and Michael Brantley. and traded starting third basemen, Casey Blake, for catching prospect Carlos Santana. Pitcher Cliff Lee
Cliff Lee
Clifton Phifer "Cliff" Lee is a Major League Baseball left-handed starting pitcher for the Philadelphia Phillies. Lee has also played for the Cleveland Indians, the Seattle Mariners, and the Texas Rangers....
went 22-3 with an ERA of 2.54 and earned the AL Cy Young Award. Grady Sizemore
Grady Sizemore
Gradius "Grady" Sizemore III is an American professional baseball outfielder with the Cleveland Indians of Major League Baseball.-Early life:...
had a career year, winning a Gold Glove and Silver Slugger
Silver Slugger
The Silver Slugger Award is awarded annually to the best offensive player at each position in both the American League and the National League, as determined by the coaches and managers of Major League Baseball...
, and the Indians finished with a record of 81-81.
Prospects for the 2009 season dimmed early when the Indians ended May with a record of 22-30. Shapiro made multiple trades: Cliff Lee and Ben Francisco to the Philadelphia Phillies for prospects Jason Knapp, Carlos Carrasco, Jason Donald and Lou Marson; Victor Martinez to the Boston Red Sox for prospects Bryan Price, Nick Hagadone and Justin Masterson; Ryan Garko to the Texas Rangers for Scott Barnes; and Kelly Shoppach to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays for Mitch Talbot. The Indians finished the season tied for last in their division,
with a record of 65-97. The team announced on September 30, 2009, that Eric Wedge and all of the team's coaching staff would be released at the end of the 2009 season. Manny Acta
Manny Acta
Manuel Elias Acta is a Major League Baseball manager for the Cleveland Indians. He is the former manager of the Washington Nationals . In the Dominican Winter League, he managed the Tigres del Licey from 2002–2004, including leading them to victory at the 2003 Caribbean Series...
was hired as the team's 40th manager on October 25, 2009.
On February 18, 2010, it was announced that Shapiro (following the end of the 2010 season) will be promoted to team President, with current President Paul Dolan becoming the new Chairman/CEO, and longtime Shapiro assistant Chris Antonetti
Chris Antonetti
Chris Antonetti is the current General Manager and Executive Vice President of the Cleveland Indians.Antonetti is a graduate of Georgetown University. He worked in the front office of the Montreal Expos in 1998...
filling the GM role.
2011–present: New GM Chris Antonetti
On January 18, 2011, longtime popular former 1B and manager Mike HargroveMike Hargrove
Dudley Michael Hargrove is a former Major League Baseball first baseman and manager. He is currently employed as an advisor with the Cleveland Indians....
was brought in as a special advisor.
Cincinnati Reds
The Ohio Cup was an annual pre-seasonSpring training
In Major League Baseball, spring training is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for roster and position spots, and gives existing team players practice time prior to competitive play...
baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
game, which pitted the Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
rivals Cleveland Indians and Cincinnati Reds
Cincinnati Reds
The Cincinnati Reds are a Major League Baseball team based in Cincinnati, Ohio. They are members of the National League Central Division. The club was established in 1882 as a charter member of the American Association and joined the National League in 1890....
.
In its first series it was a single-game cup, played each year at minor-league Cooper Stadium
Cooper Stadium
Cooper Stadium is a baseball stadium in Columbus, Ohio and was the home of the minor league Columbus Clippers from 1977 to 2008. Cooper Stadium has had several names over the years, including Red Bird Stadium, Jets Stadium and Franklin County Stadium, but in 1984 the stadium was renamed in honor of...
in Columbus, Ohio
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
, was staged just days before the start of each new Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
season. A total of eight Ohio Cup games were played, in 1989 to 1996, with the Indians winning six of them. It stopped because interleague play
Interleague play
Interleague play is the term used to describe regular season Major League Baseball games played between teams in different leagues, introduced in . Before the 1997 season, teams in the American League and National League did not meet during the regular season...
started in 1997. The winner of the game each year was awarded the Ohio Cup in postgame ceremonies. The Ohio Cup was a favorite among baseball fans in Columbus, with attendances regularly topping 15,000.
In 1997 and after, the two teams competed annually in the regular-season Battle of Ohio or Buckeye Series. In 2008 the Ohio Cup restarted.
The Indians currently lead the interleague series 38–35.
Uniforms
- See also: Major League Baseball#MLB uniforms (including image of baseball-cap logos of the 30 MLB franchises)
The Indians' home uniform is white with navy piping around the neck and down either side of the buttons on the front of the jersey; the navy piping is also located around each sleeve. Across the front of the jersey in script font is the word "Indians" in red with a navy and white outline. The jersey has the Chief Wahoo logo on the left sleeve. The home cap and batting helmet are navy blue with a red bill and feature the Chief Wahoo logo on the front.
The road uniform is gray, with "Cleveland" in navy blue block letters trimmed in red is across the front of the jersey, navy blue piping around the sleeves, and the Chief Wahoo logo located on the left sleeve. The road cap and batting helmet are navy blue with a red block "C" on the front.
The alternate home uniform is cream colored with "Indians" across the front in red block lettering with a dark navy blue outline. The Chief Wahoo logo is located on the left sleeve. This jersey is the only Indians jersey to not have the players' names on the back. The alternate home cap is red with a navy blue block "C" on the front (the Chief Wahoo batting helmet is still used). This uniform is worn during weekend and holiday home games.
The alternate road jersey is navy blue with white piping around the neck and down either side of the buttons on the front of the jersey; the white piping is also located around each sleeve. Script "Indians" is located across the front of the jersey in the same fashion as the home uniform; the Chief Wahoo logo is on the left sleeve. The alternate road cap is navy blue with the Chief Wahoo logo on the front (the block "C" batting helmet is used for all road games). The blue jersey is also worn during Tuesday home games with the standard home cap and helmet.
For 2012, the navy piping around the neck and on the front of the home jersey will be removed. In addition, the script "Indians" across the front will be outlined in navy only; the font has been modified slightly, as well. The alternate road jersey will undergo similar changes; the front and neck piping will be removed and the script "Indians" will be outlined only in white.
The Drummer
John Adams, known by baseball fans as "The Drummer", has played a bass drumBass drum
Bass drums are percussion instruments that can vary in size and are used in several musical genres. Three major types of bass drums can be distinguished. The type usually seen or heard in orchestral, ensemble or concert band music is the orchestral, or concert bass drum . It is the largest drum of...
at nearly every home game since 1973. He is the only fan for whom the team has dedicated a bobble head
Bobble Head
Bobble Head is an American recording artist, dancer, and songwriter.- Biography :Bobble Head was born in Denver, Colorado. By promoting his music on YouTube and MySpace he was discovered by 30 Rock actor/model Eric West, who signed him to a management and production deal...
day. Adams originally paid for his tickets (one for himself, and one for his drum), but recently the Indians have paid for his seats in honor of the contributions he has made to the ballpark atmosphere. He has been featured in an interview segment in a 1997
1997 in baseball
-Major League Baseball:*World Series: Florida Marlins over Cleveland Indians ; Liván Hernández, MVP*American League Championship Series MVP: Marquis Grissom**American League Division Series*National League Championship Series MVP: Liván Hernández...
episode of This Week In Baseball
This Week in Baseball
This Week in Baseball is a weekly television program, originally designed to show highlights of the previous week's Major League Baseball action. TWIB debuted in .-Genesis of the series:...
.
Sellout streak
Between June 12, 1995 and April 4, 2001, the Indians sold out 455 consecutive home games, drawing a total of 19,324,248 fans to Jacobs Field. The demand for tickets was so great that all 81 home games were sold out before Opening DayOpening Day
Opening Day is the day on which professional baseball leagues begin their regular season. For Major League Baseball and most of the minor leagues, this day falls during the first week of April. For baseball fans, Opening Day serves as a symbol of rebirth; writer Thomas Boswell once penned a book...
on at least three separate occasions. The sellout streak set a Major League Baseball record; this was broken by the Boston Red Sox
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
on September 8, 2008, though Boston's Fenway Park
Fenway Park
Fenway Park is a baseball park near Kenmore Square in Boston, Massachusetts. Located at 4 Yawkey Way, it has served as the home ballpark of the Boston Red Sox baseball club since it opened in 1912, and is the oldest Major League Baseball stadium currently in use. It is one of two "classic"...
is considerably smaller than Progressive Field. The team's success during the late 1990s would even lead comedian and Cleveland native Drew Carey
Drew Carey
Drew Allison Carey is an American actor, singer, comedian, photographer, sports executive, and game show host. After serving in the U.S. Marine Corps and making a name for himself in stand-up comedy, Carey eventually gained popularity starring on his own sitcom, The Drew Carey Show, and serving as...
to quip, "Finally it's your team that sucks!" The Indians honored their loyal fans by retiring the number 455 with the name 455 The Fans.
Nickname and logo controversy
The club nickname and its cartoon logo have been criticizedNative American mascot controversy
The propriety of using Native American mascots and images in sports has been a topic of debate in the United States and Canada since the 1960s.Americans have had a history of drawing inspiration from native peoples and "playing Indian" that dates back at least to the 18th century...
for perpetuating Native American stereotypes. In 1997, during the team's most recent World Series
1997 World Series
-Game 1:Saturday, October 18, 1997 at Pro Player Stadium in Miami Gardens, FloridaThe first World Series game in the state of Florida, Game 1 featured a youngster and a veteran facing each other on the mound...
appearance, three Native
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
protesters were arrested, but later acquitted.
Radio and TV
The Indians' flagship radio station is WTAMWTAM
WTAM — branded Newsradio WTAM 1100 — is a commercial radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio, serving Greater Cleveland and much of surrounding Northeast Ohio. Owned by Clear Channel Communications, the station broadcasts primarily a news/talk format...
AM 1100. Tom Hamilton
Tom Hamilton (broadcaster)
Tom Hamilton , a native of Waterloo, Wisconsin, is the chief radio announcer for the Cleveland Indians Major League Baseball team, and during the off season, serves as a college basketball commentator for The Big Ten Network....
and Mike Hegan
Mike Hegan
James Michael "Mike" Hegan is an American former Major League Baseball first baseman and outfielder and later radio announcer for the Cleveland Indians. In 1969, Hegan hit the first home run in Seattle Pilots history in his first at-bat.He is the son of longtime Indians catcher Jim Hegan...
are the primary radio announcers, with Jim Rosenhaus (pregame host, producer/engineer) calling the middle innings. Hegan retired from his radio post at the end of the season (he will remain with the team as an alumni ambassador).
Select games can be heard on WMMS
WMMS
WMMS — branded 100.7 WMMS: The Buzzard — is a commercial radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio, widely recognized as one of the most influential rock stations in America throughout much of the history of FM broadcasting...
FM 100.7 when there is a conflict with Cleveland Cavaliers
Cleveland Cavaliers
The Cleveland Cavaliers are a professional basketball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They began playing in the National Basketball Association in 1970 as an expansion team...
basketball games, which also air on WTAM. If the Cavaliers are in the playoffs, all conflicted Indians games go to WMMS. WMMS will also air Spring training
Spring training
In Major League Baseball, spring training is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for roster and position spots, and gives existing team players practice time prior to competitive play...
games if there's a conflict with the Cavaliers on WTAM.
The television rights are held by SportsTime Ohio
SportsTime Ohio
SportsTime Ohio is a regional sports network in Cleveland and northern Ohio, launched in 2006. It was created to air Cleveland Indians games, and is owned by the family which owns the team. It is also the cable television home of the Cleveland Browns...
(STO), a network launched in by the Indians. Matt Underwood
Matt Underwood
For the actor, see Matthew UnderwoodMatt Underwood is the play-by-play announcer for the Cleveland Indians telecasts on SportsTime Ohio and WKYC Channel 3...
and former Indians Gold Glove winning CF Rick Manning
Rick Manning
Richard Eugene Manning is a former center fielder in Major League Baseball who played for the Cleveland Indians and Milwaukee Brewers...
form the announcing team, with Al Pawlowski
Al Pawlowski
Al Pawlowski is an American sports broadcaster that is based in Cleveland, Ohio. Pawlowski hosts the pre and post-game shows for the Cleveland Indians on the team owned SportsTime Ohio regional TV network, serves as anchor of the in-game updates, and hosts a couple of weekly Indians related...
as the pregame/postgame host and update anchor during the game, and former Indians LHP Jason Stanford
Jason Stanford
Jason John Stanford is a former left-handed Major League Baseball starting pitcher. He is a 1995 graduate of Canyon del Oro High School in Oro Valley, Arizona, a suburb of Tucson. Stanford attended Barton County Community College in Great Bend, Kansas in 1996 and 1997, where he was an Academic...
as pregame analyst. Palowski also calls about 10–12 games per year to allow Underwood to take time off, and WKYC weekend sports anchor Dave Chudowsky then fills Palowski's role. Former Indians 1B and manager, and current special advisor Mike Hargrove
Mike Hargrove
Dudley Michael Hargrove is a former Major League Baseball first baseman and manager. He is currently employed as an advisor with the Cleveland Indians....
will work select TV games as an analyst to allow Manning some time off. STO's Katie Witham serves as field reporter during home games. Twenty games a year are shown on free TV, originating on WKYC channel 3 (NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
), (STO also airs the WKYC games via simulcast).
Past Indians broadcasters include Tom Manning
Tom Manning
Tom Manning is a fictional character from the Dark Horse Comics universe. He is director of the Bureau of Paranormal Research and Defense.Manning has classically been portrayed as a stuffed-shirt bureaucrat who refuses to trust the paranormal members of his agency, even though their presence is...
, Jack Graney
Jack Graney
John Gladstone Graney was a Canadian left fielder in Major League Baseball who played his entire career with the Cleveland Indians . He was born in St. Thomas, Ontario.100px|thumb|left|...
(the first ex-baseball player to become a play-by-play announcer), Jack Corrigan (now with the Colorado Rockies), Jimmy Dudley
Jimmy Dudley
James R. "Jimmy" Dudley was an American sportscaster, best known as the play-by-play voice of Major League Baseball's Cleveland Indians for nearly two decades....
who received the Ford Frick Award in 1997, Ken Coleman
Ken Coleman
Kenneth R. Coleman was an American radio and television sportscaster for 38 years . He was born in Quincy, Massachusetts....
, Joe Castiglione
Joe Castiglione
Joseph John Castiglione is an American radio announcer for the Boston Red Sox baseball team, an author and lecturer.-Early life and career:...
, Van Patrick
Van Patrick
Van Patrick was an American sportscaster, best known for his play-by-play work with the Detroit Lions and Detroit Tigers....
, Joe Tait
Joe Tait
Joseph "Joe" Tait is an American sports broadcaster, who called the radio play by play for the Cleveland Cavaliers of the NBA. With the exception of two seasons in the early 1980s and illness in 2010-11, he has been the Cavaliers' radio announcer since the team's inception in 1970...
, Bruce Drennan
Bruce Drennan
Bruce Drennan is an American sportscaster in Cleveland, Ohio. He has been a radio and television sportscaster for 39 years....
, Jim "Mudcat" Grant
Mudcat Grant
James Timothy "Mudcat" Grant is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who played for the Cleveland Indians , Minnesota Twins , Los Angeles Dodgers , Montreal Expos , St. Louis Cardinals , Oakland Athletics and Pittsburgh Pirates...
, Harry Jones, Rocky Colavito
Rocky Colavito
Rocco Domenico "Rocky" Colavito, Jr. is a former right fielder in Major League Baseball best known for his years with the Cleveland Indians. He wore a #6, #7 or #21 jersey during his MLB career...
and Herb Score
Herb Score
Herbert Jude Score was a Major League Baseball pitcher and announcer.-Athletic career:Score came up as a rookie in with the Cleveland Indians...
, who called Indians' baseball for 34 seasons.
Baseball Hall of Famers
Ford C. Frick Award recipients
Retired numbers
 The Fans Retired 2001 |
 Bob Feller Bob Feller On December 8, 1941, Feller enlisted in the Navy, volunteering immediately for combat service, becoming the first Major League Baseball player to do so following the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7. Feller served as Gun Captain aboard the USS Alabama, and missed four seasons during his service... SP, Coach Retired 1957 |
 Earl Averill Earl Averill Howard Earl Averill was an American player in Major League Baseball who was a center fielder from 1929 to 1941... CF Retired 1975 |
 Larry Doby Larry Doby Lawrence Eugene "Larry" Doby was an American professional baseball player in the Negro leagues and Major League Baseball.... CF, Coach Retired 1994 |
 Bob Lemon Bob Lemon Robert Granville Lemon was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1976.... 3B, SP, Coach Retired 1998 |
 Lou Boudreau Lou Boudreau Louis "Lou" Boudreau was an American Major League Baseball player and manager. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1970... SS, M Retired 1970 |
 Mel Harder Mel Harder Melvin Leroy Harder , nicknamed "Chief", was an American, right-handed, starting pitcher and coach in Major League Baseball, who played his entire career with the Cleveland Indians. He spent 36 seasons overall with the Indians, as a player from 1928 to 1947 and as one of the game's most highly... SP, Coach Retired 1990 |
 Jackie Robinson Jackie Robinson Jack Roosevelt "Jackie" Robinson was the first black Major League Baseball player of the modern era. Robinson broke the baseball color line when he debuted with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947... 2B Retired 1997 |
Jackie Robinson's number 42 is retired throughout Major League Baseball.
The number 455 was honored after the Indians sold out 455 consecutive games between 1995 and 2001, which was an MLB record until it was surpassed by the Boston Red Sox
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
on September 8, 2008.
Minor league affiliations
| Level | Team | League | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| AAA | Columbus Clippers Columbus Clippers The Columbus Clippers are a minor league baseball team based in Columbus, Ohio. The team plays in the International League and is the Triple-A affiliate of the Cleveland Indians. The team is owned by the government of Franklin County, Ohio.... |
International League International League The International League is a minor league baseball league that operates in the eastern United States. Like the Pacific Coast League and the Mexican League, it plays at the Triple-A level, which is one step below Major League Baseball. It was so named because it had teams in both the United States... |
Columbus, OH Columbus, Ohio Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city... |
| AA | Akron Aeros Akron Aeros The Akron Aeros are a minor league baseball team based in Akron, Ohio, USA. The team, which plays in the Eastern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Cleveland Indians.The Aeros play in Canal Park, located in downtown Akron, which seats 9,097 fans... |
Eastern League Eastern League (U.S. baseball) The Eastern League is a minor league baseball league which operates primarily in the northeastern United States, although it has had a team in Ohio since 1989. The Eastern League has played at the AA level since 1963. The league was founded in 1923 as the New York-Pennsylvania League... |
Akron, OH Akron, Ohio Akron , is the fifth largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Summit County. It is located in the Great Lakes region approximately south of Lake Erie along the Little Cuyahoga River. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 199,110. The Akron Metropolitan... |
| Advanced A | Carolina Mudcats Carolina Mudcats The Carolina Mudcats are a minor league baseball team based in the eastern suburbs of Raleigh, North Carolina. The team, which plays in the Carolina League, are the Single-A affiliate of the Cleveland Indians major-league club beginning in 2012.-History:... |
Carolina League Carolina League The Carolina League is a minor league baseball affiliation which operates in the South Atlantic Coast of the United States. Before 2002, it was classified as a "High A" league, indicating its status as a Class A league with the highest level of competition within that classification, and the fifth... |
Zebulon, NC Zebulon, North Carolina Zebulon is the eastern-most town in Wake County, North Carolina, United States. In 2008, the population was estimated to be 4,732. Zebulon is part of the Research Triangle metropolitan region... |
| A | Lake County Captains Lake County Captains The Lake County Captains are a minor league baseball team in Eastlake, Ohio, a suburb of Cleveland. The team, a Class A affiliate of the Cleveland Indians, plays in the Midwest League.... |
Midwest League Midwest League The Midwest League is a Class-A minor league baseball league which operates in the Midwestern United States.-History:Six teams – the Belleville Stags, the Centralia Cubs, the Marion Indians, the Mattoon Indians or East Frankfort White Sox, the Mount Vernon Braves, and the West Frankfort... |
Eastlake, OH Eastlake, Ohio As of the census of 2000, there were 20,255 people, 8,055 households, and 5,557 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,166.5 people per square mile . There were 8,310 housing units at an average density of 1,299.1 per square mile... |
| Short Season A | Mahoning Valley Scrappers Mahoning Valley Scrappers The Mahoning Valley Scrappers are a minor league baseball club based in Niles, Ohio, a city in the valley of the Mahoning River. The Scrappers play in the Pinckney Division of the Short-Season A classification New York - Penn League and are affiliated with the Cleveland Indians Major League... |
New York-Penn League | Niles, OH Niles, Ohio Niles is a city in Trumbull County, Ohio, United States. The city's population was 20,932 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Youngstown-Warren-Boardman, OH-PA Metropolitan Statistical Area.... |
| Rookie | AZL Indians | Arizona League Arizona League The Arizona League is a minor league baseball league that operates in and around Phoenix, Arizona. It is a rookie-level professional baseball league run by Major League Baseball since 1989. Games are played at the spring training complexes of the team's parent organizations from mid-June until the... |
Goodyear, AZ Goodyear, Arizona Goodyear is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States. According to the 2010 census, the population of the city is 65,275... |
| DSL Indians Dominican Summer Indians The Dominican Summer League Indians are a minor league baseball team in Boca Chica, Dominican Republic managed by Max Diaz. They are a Rookie-level team in the Dominican Summer League and are an affiliate of the Cleveland Indians. The DSL Indians play their home games at the Las Americas Baseball... |
Dominican Summer League Dominican Summer League The Dominican Summer League is a branch of affiliated minor league baseball which is played in the Dominican Republic. The league was founded in 1985. The 2011 72-game season begins May 28 and ends August 20... |
Dominican Republic Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries... |
Season records
- Highest Batting Average: .408, Joe JacksonShoeless Joe JacksonJoseph Jefferson Jackson , nicknamed "Shoeless Joe", was an American baseball player who played Major League Baseball in the early part of the 20th century...
(1911) - Most Games: 163, Leon WagnerLeon WagnerLeon Lamar Wagner was an American left fielder in Major League Baseball who played with the San Francisco Giants , St. Louis Cardinals , Los Angeles Angels , Cleveland Indians and Chicago White Sox . He batted left-handed and threw right-handed...
(1964) - Most Runs: 140, Earl AverillEarl AverillHoward Earl Averill was an American player in Major League Baseball who was a center fielder from 1929 to 1941...
(1930) - Highest Slugging %: .714, Albert BelleAlbert BelleAlbert Jojuan Belle is a former American Major League Baseball outfielder for the Cleveland Indians, Chicago White Sox, and Baltimore Orioles...
(1994) - Most Doubles: 64, George BurnsGeorge Burns (first baseman)George Henry Burns , nicknamed "Tioga George," was an American first baseman in Major League Baseball who played for five American League teams from to...
(1926) - Most Triples: 26, Joe JacksonShoeless Joe JacksonJoseph Jefferson Jackson , nicknamed "Shoeless Joe", was an American baseball player who played Major League Baseball in the early part of the 20th century...
(1912) - Most Home Runs: 52, Jim ThomeJim ThomeJames Howard "Jim" Thome is a Major League Baseball player for the Philadelphia Phillies. He is the eighth player to hit 600 home runs in the major leagues. He is widely considered a future Hall of Famer.-Cleveland Indians :...
(2002) - Most RBIs: 165, Manny RamirezManny RamírezManuel "Manny" Arístides Ramírez Onelcida is a retired Dominican-American professional baseball outfielder. He was recognized for great batting skill and power, a nine-time Silver Slugger and one of 25 players to hit 500 career home runs. Ramirez's 21 grand slams are third all-time, and his 28...
(1999) - Most Stolen Bases: 75, Kenny LoftonKenny LoftonKenneth Lofton is a former Major League Baseball outfielder known for his great speed on the base paths as well as in the field, award-winning defensive play , timely hitting, and playful spirit. He batted and threw left-handed...
(1996) - Most Wins: 31, Jim Bagby, Sr.Jim Bagby, Sr.James Charles Jacob Bagby, Sr. was an American right-handed starting pitcher in Major League Baseball. Bagby was the first pitcher to hit a home run in a modern World Series, and one of the last three pitchers to win over 30 games in one season .-Biography:A native of Barnett, Georgia, Bagby began...
(1920) - Lowest ERA: 1.16, Addie JossAddie JossAdrian Joss was a Major League Baseball pitcher. He pitched his entire nine-year baseball career for the Cleveland Bronchos/Naps .-Early life:...
(1908) - Strikeouts: 348, Bob FellerBob FellerOn December 8, 1941, Feller enlisted in the Navy, volunteering immediately for combat service, becoming the first Major League Baseball player to do so following the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7. Feller served as Gun Captain aboard the USS Alabama, and missed four seasons during his service...
(1946) - Complete Games: 36, Bob FellerBob FellerOn December 8, 1941, Feller enlisted in the Navy, volunteering immediately for combat service, becoming the first Major League Baseball player to do so following the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7. Feller served as Gun Captain aboard the USS Alabama, and missed four seasons during his service...
(1946) - Saves: 46, José MesaJosé MesaJosé Ramón Nova Mesa [MAY-sah] is a former Major League Baseball right-handed relief pitcher. His nickname was "Joe Table," the literal translation of his name in the English language....
(1995)
External links
- Cleveland Indians 1998 Annual Report, the last filed with the SEC
- Sports E-Cyclopedia
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